Immunoregulatory effects of alpha-interferon. Effects on in-vitro antibody synthesis by lymphocytes from patients with rheumatoid arthritis

The immunosuppressive effects of alpha-interferon (IFN) on the in-vitro synthesis of specific anti-influenza virus antibody by lymphocytes from 20 healthy donors were compared with those from 12 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. No differences were observed between the two groups. IFN suppressed the induction of in-vitro antibody synthesis by lymphocytes from rheumatoid donors but did not affect antibody synthesis once this had been initiated. Furthermore, the IFN-mediated suppression of antibody synthesised by rheumatoid lymphocytes could also be reversed by B cell helper supernatant. These findings make it unlikely that alpha-IFN affects established B cell responses characteristic of the rheumatic diseases.