Abstract
The role of cell-mediated immunity in glomeruli on the pathogenesis of human glomerulonephritis (GN) was evaluated by the monoclonal antibodies with indirect immunofluorescence (IF). The kidney specimens by open renal biopsies were examined by light microscopy, IF, and electron microscopy. The materials were consisted with 13 cases of lupus nephritis (LN) (4 cases of mesangial LN, 3 of mem-branous LN, 5 of diffuse proliferative LN, and 1 of rapidly progressive LN), 14 cases of primary GN (6 of IgA GN, 2 of minimal change GN, 3 of membranous GN, and 3 of membranoproliferative GN) and 3 cases of normal subjects. Monoclonal antibodies were Ortho's OKT (3, 4, 6, 8) antibodies, Bekton's Leu (1, 2a, 3a) antibodies, Sera-Lab's macrophage (Mφ) and DR antigen antibodies, and Dr. Schlossman's Mφ antibody. The results are as follows: (1) the tissues of the normal subjects were shown to have no specific IF in the glomeruli as well as on tubalar cells and in the interstitium. (2) OKT antibodies showed homogeneous IF in the mesangium and/or on GBM where only when human immunoglobulins were demonstrated by routine IF studies. (3) Leu antibodies disclosed only T, Tγ, and Tμ cells where mononuclear cells were infiltrated in the glomeruli and interstitium. However, regardless of renal histopathologies, the numbers of the T cells found per one glomerulus were less than several. (4) Mφ and DR antigen antibodies revealed more than several Mφ per one glomelulus only in the cases of cell proliferative type GN such as diffuse proliferative GN, rapidly progressive GN, and membranoproliferative GN. In addition, in a case of rapidly progressive LN, Mφ were demonstrated to participate in the formation of crescent only from the side of glomerulus, but not from the side of Bowman's capsule. These findings lead to the conclusion that Mφ, bat not T cells, play important clues in glomeruli on the pathogenesis of proliferative GN.
