We studied whether a streptococcal immunopotentiator, OK-432, could reactivate natural killer (NK) cell activity following the readministration of OK-432 in cancer patients.
Microassay methods were employed for a 5-hr⁵¹Cr release test using mononuclear cells separated from peripheral blood as effector cells and ⁵¹Cr-labeled K562 cells as target cells with an effectorto-target ratio of 20: 1.
In the patients before or after surgery, the first course of OK-432 strongly augmented the NK activity within three days after the initial administration of OK-432.
Enhanced cytotoxicity occurred with reintroduction of OK-432. But the maximum level was lower than that of the first course when the duration between the first and second course of OK-432 administration was short, whereas the maximum level of cytotoxicity was high and almost same as that of the first course when the duration was long.

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Salivary amylase values in serum (amylase-s) were evaluated before and after sialography in 19 patients with Sjögren's syndrome (SjS) and were compared to those in 10 patients without SjS. Non-SjS patients consisted of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ulcerative colitis and chronic pyelonephritis.
Amylase-s in non-SjS patients increased 3 to 6 hours after injection of Conray-400. The amount of that increase was 40±16 SR/dl which was approximately 93% increase from the pre-injection levels of 43±15 SR/dl. In base of maximum elevation of amylase-s after injection of Conray-400, SjS was divided into 3 types: an increase of more than 56 SR/dl (high response type: H type), the same increase of 40±16 SR/dl as in non-SjS patients (control type: C type) and an increase of less than 24 SR/dl (low response type: L type).
Most patients with H type of SjS showed diffusely punctate sialectasis in a sialogram, very mild sialadenitis in histopathology and negative keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS). Conversely most with L type of SjS showed verious changes in sialogram from normal feature to diffuse sialectasis and recognized severe sialadenitis histopathologically and positive KCS. These findings suggest that SjS with L type is more advanced and SjS with H type is milder in severity.
Some SjS patients with L type and normal feature or locally punctate sialectasis in sialogram demonstrated histopathologically severe sialadenitis in sublingual glands, so that biopsy of sublingual glands is essential in SjS with L type even if they appeared normal feature on sialogram.
Most patients with SjS alone or both SiS and SLE were severely invaded in their salivary glands, comparing with those of the patients overlapped with SjS and chronic thyroiditis, with or without progressive systemic sclerosis.

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Anticomplementary activity (ACA) of five liver disease sera with no hemolytic complement activity and one IgG-myeloma serum was examined before and after heating at 56°C for 30 min.
The ACA of IgG-myeloma serum was found only in the heated sample. However, the ACA of liver diseases sera was found in both unheated and heated samples.
Since ACA of liver disease sera was inhibited by rheumatoid arthritis serum but not by normal serum, IgG antibodies combined with some antigen or aggregated IgG were suspected as factors eliciting the ACA.
They might participate also in decreasing of hemolytic complement activity in the cold, which was frequently found in chronic liver disease sera.

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We performed a macrophage activating factors (MAF) assay, making use of the property that activated macrophages incorporate ³H-glucosamine, and applied it to clinical examination in the place of a macrophage migration inhibition assay.
As a result of a fundamental experiment in which purified protein derivatives was taken as antigen, the suitable culture time of the macrophage was 3 days, and the optimal concentration of it was 1×10⁶ cells/ml.
Next, a MAF assay was performed under this condition in 10 cases against 12 drugs which showed the positive lymphocyte transformation of drug-induced allergic hepatitis. All cases showed the positive reactions (SI>200%), and the majority of the cases showed high SI values than those by whole blood micro-culture assay. MAF assay is easier than macrophage migration inhibition assay, and useful for the immuno-diagnosis of drug-induced allergic hepatitis.

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ADCC effector cell (K cell) can be well detectable by microplate method. We studied the distribution of K cell in the human lymphoid organs, and assesed K cell subpopulation in peripheral blood of the patients. The results are summarized as follow:
1. K cell was detected in peripheral blood and bone marrow, but not in lymphnode and thymoma.
2. K cell population of peripheral lymphocytes was 6.6±2.4% in normals.
3. K cell percentage was elevated in the patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. On the other hand, it was depressed in the patients with untreated carcinoma and malignant lymphoma.
4. No correlation was found between K cell percentage and the age or PPD skin reaction of the patients.

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Immunodeficiency with short-limbed dwarfism is a rare disease and only one patient was previously reported in Japan.
Two and 9/12 year old girl visited our hospital in July 1980, complaining of frequent respiratory infection and the growth retardation. In brief, physical examination revealed short stature at her age, height 66cm (Mean-7.3 S. D.)weight 6, 560 grm (Mean-4.3 S. D.), upper and lower segment ratio 1.64 (average 1.51). Moist rales were audible on bilateral lung field and bulged abdomen was observed. Her hair was thin and light colored. She had hyperextensibility of the fingers and deformed chest. X-ray film of the long bones revealed a marked osteoporosis and distal end flaring. No abnormal findings in endocrinological examinations were observed.
Immunological examination disclosed lymphopenia (932/mm³), normal B-lymphocyte count (EAC-RFC, 274/mm³)and low T-lymphocyte count (E-RFC, 93/mm³), normal levels of serum immunoglobulins (lgG, IgA, IgM, IgE), normal levels of isohemagglutinin titer, normal response to DPT vaccine. Negative delayed type hypersensitivity skin reaction to PPDs, Candida and SK-SD, very low ³H-TdR uptake of the patient lymphocytes stimulated by PHA were observed. PMN function tests were normal.
The patient was diagnosed Type II of Immunodeficiency with short-limbed dwarfism (cell-mediated immunodeficiency but intact antibody-mediated immunity)whose clinical and laboratory findings were similar to those of the patient previously reported in Japan.
The patient respiratory infection was well controlled with broad spectrum antibiotics and has been followed at the outpatient clinic.

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The detection of lysozyme-secreting monocytes was studied by a protein A plaque assay using the Cunningham chamber. When the optimal concentrations of anti-lysozyme serum and Guinea Pig serum for the plaque formation were selected, the number of plaque forming cells reached maximum after 3 hours incubation. Under these conditions 18.4±8.0% of separated mononuclear cells by Ficoll-Conray method were found to form plaques. This data indicated that the sensitivity to detect the lysozyme-secreting cells was markedly improved in comparison with the method using an agarose layer. The removal of adherent cells from mononuclear cells decreased the number of plaques. It was thus ascertained that the plaque forming cells were made up of monocytes.

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