Mechanisms of enhancement of Epstein-Barr virus-induced transformation of peripheral blood lymphocytes by a tumor promoter, TPA, with special reference to lowering of cytotoxicity of T cells

The mechanism of the previously observed enhancement of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-induced cell transformation of human lymphocytes by 12-0-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) was studied. A concentration of TPA (0.5 ng/ml) was used. In cultures of human cord blood lymphocytes infected with EBV in the presence of TPA, a larger number of EBV-associated nuclear antigen (EBNA)-positive and/or DNA synthesizing cells was observed than in the absence of TPA. In the virus-infected lymphocyte cultures of EBV-seropositive adult donors, in vitro regression of transformation, which is known to be caused by T lymphocytes, was suppressed by TPA, EBV-specific and -non-specific cytotoxicity of T cells generated in mixed cultures of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) of seropositive adults and autologous lymphoblastoid cell line (LCL) cells was markedly lowered by the presence of TPA in the cultures, However, TPA had little effect on proliferation of T cells in stimulated cultures, and addition of TPA to the reaction mixture for the cytotoxicity test did not lower the cytotoxicity. These results suggest that TPA has an inhibitory effect on T cells which suppress EBV-transformation. THe effect on T cells, together with the direct promoting effect on proliferation of EBV-transformed cells, may explain the outcome of enhancement of EBV-induced LCL establishment from PBL of seropositive donors by TPA previously observed.