Phenotypic diversity within clones of human normal T cells

Human normal T cells were selected for in vitro cloning according to the expression of T4, T8 or T10 antigens on individual cells. Clones were produced from each of these cells irrespective of the antigenic phenotype of the parental cell. The cloned progeny manifested, in many cases, shifts in antigen expression. Thus, T4+T8- cells gave clones expressing predominantly T4-T8+ and vice versa. The clonal expression of T4 and T8 seemed to be mutually exclusive. Antigenic shifts were recorded also in clones derived from T4-T8-T10- cells, resulting in T10+ clones which were also either T4+ or T8+ and from T4+T8-T10+ cloned cells yielding clones of either T4+ or T8+ cells. Testing functional properties we found that NK activity was mediated not only by T10+ cells but also, in some cases, by T4+ and T8+ cells. Moreover, TCGF production, which may reflect helper activity, was mediated not only by T4+ cells. Only the cytotoxic (CTL) activity seems to be confined to the T8 phenotype. Thus, it appears that T antigens, which seemed to be molecular markers of differentiation, are not markers for terminal differentiation and do not always reflect defined functional properties. These conclusions are drawn from cloning of normal T cells which manifest properties different from those of T-cell lines or T hybridomas.