Factors influencing human IgE synthesis in vitro and in vivo.

Several pitfalls may affect studies on human IgE synthesis in vitro. In this paper, the requirement for stringent specificity of the anti-IgE antibodies used and for assessment not only of IgE detectable in culture supernatants but also as cell-associated IgE is emphasized. The use of cycloheximide-treated cultures as controls also leaves wishes open. Activated, human T cells and T cell hybridomas produce IgE-binding factors, which may be detected by a sensitive in vitro test and which may apparently also become the endeavour of synthesis by molecular biological techniques. Although the evidence available in rodents for the role of IgE-binding factors in modulating IgE synthesis has not yet been fully reproduced by us in man, the fact that classical IgE-enhancing procedures in rodents (e.g. radiotherapy, T cell suppression) also affect IgE production in man leads to believe that similar immunoregulation mechanisms apply to various mammalian species studied so far.