Suppression of lymphocyte activation by plasma lipoproteins: modulation by cell number and type

Plasma lipoproteins containing apolipoproteins B and E, as well as delipidated water-soluble apoE, suppress lymphocyte activation by polyclonal T cell mitogens in vitro. This report establishes that apoB100, isolated from human plasma LDL, also suppresses lymphocyte activation. Prereplicative mitogen-induced events as well as DNA synthesis and cell division are suppressed. A number of experimental variables influence the extent to which lipoproteins suppress lymphocyte activation. Lipoproteins isolated from different donors vary widely in suppressive potency. In addition, the extent of suppression depends on the cultured cell density: suppression at fixed concentration of lipoprotein or apolipoprotein decreases as the number of cells increases. When the total number of cells per culture and the suppressor concentration are both fixed, the extent of suppression decreases as the percent T cells or monocytes increases. In the lymphatic tissue where lymphocytes and accessory cells are concentrated, plasma lipoproteins may play a less important immunoregulatory role in normolipidemic subjects compared to that in subjects with hyperlipoproteinemia, particularly hypercholesterolemia, since the tissue concentration of lipoproteins in hyperlipidemic subjects is likely to be elevated.