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Phenotypic markers for functional lymphocyte populations: a critical appraisal of current usage as disease markers
1Department of Clinical Immunology, Flinders Medical Centre, Bedford Park, South Australia.
Insights
Clinical immunology relies on immune function tests, but traditional lymphocyte function assays are limited. This review explores using lymphocyte markers as a more effective diagnostic tool in clinical settings.
Area of Science:
- Clinical Immunology
- Immunology
- Cellular Immunology
Background:
- Abnormal immune function is implicated in numerous diseases.
- Clinical Immunology laboratories routinely measure immune function.
- Current lymphocyte function tests are often slow, tedious, and lack clinical discriminatory power, limiting their use.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the characteristics of a clinically useful panel of lymphocyte markers.
- To compare the utility of marker studies versus in vitro functional studies for clinical questions.
- To propose a panel of lymphocyte markers for further evaluation.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on lymphocyte markers and functional assays.
- Analysis of characteristics defining clinically useful marker panels.
- Evaluation of current markers and functional assays in clinical use.
Main Results:
- The increasing availability of monoclonal antibodies has led to the use of lymphocyte membrane molecules as indicators of functional potential.
- Marker studies offer a potentially faster and more discriminatory approach compared to traditional functional assays.
- A proposed panel of markers warrants further investigation for clinical utility.
Conclusions:
- Lymphocyte marker analysis presents a promising alternative to conventional functional assays in clinical immunology.
- Careful selection of markers can provide clinically relevant information about immune status.
- Further evaluation of proposed marker panels is recommended to enhance diagnostic capabilities.
Abstract:
Abnormal immune function plays a role in a number of diseases, and measurement of immune function is an important role for Clinical Immunology laboratories (Chapel and Sewell, 1990; Miller et al., 1991; Rose et al., 1986; Stites, 1991). Tests for lymphocyte function tend to be slow and tedious, and to lack clinically useful discriminatory power; as a result their use in a clinical context is limited (see references cited above). On the other hand, the increasing numbers of monoclonal antibodies against lymphocyte membrane molecules has led to the use of markers as indicators of functional potential (Reinherz and Schlossman, 1982). This review examines the characteristics that make a clinically useful panel of markers, considers the kinds of questions that can be answered by marker or in vitro functional studies, reviews markers and functional assays in current use and proposes a panel of markers that may be worthy of further evaluation.
