Anti-VH antibodies interfere with antigen binding by human T lymphocytes

The effect of antisera against a VH fragment have been investigated in several T cell proliferative assay systems. Anti-VH antisera raised in sheep, rabbits and chicken induced profound inhibition of PPD stimulated lymphoproliferation. Likewise were both mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) and autologous mixed lymphocyte reaction (AMLR) severely hampered while stimulation induced by mitogens was only minimally affected. Specificity testing indicates that the inhibiting antibodies in these experiments are not directed against native immunoglobulin determinants but rather against determinants specific for the VH fragment. These results thus support the notion that T cells express VH antigens and that these antigens are part of or closely associated with the antigen receptor on human T lymphocytes.