Effects of recombinant interleukin 1 beta on peripheral blood cells and induction of lymphokine-activated killer activity in patients with urological malignancies

Subcutaneous injection of human recombinant interleukin 1 (IL-1) beta was given to 9 patients with urological malignancies (5 renal cell carcinoma, 2 bladder carcinoma, 1 renal pelvic tumor, and 1 testicular tumor), at an initial dose of 1 x 10(4) units on days 1 and 2, and there after weekly for 4 weeks. The dose was increased by 1 x 10(4) units weekly up to final dose of 4 x 10(4) units. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were isolated from patients on day 3 in week 2 and week 4, and lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) activity against Daudi cells was measured using 4 hr 51Cr-release assay, after incubation with human recombinant interleukin 2 (IL-2) of 50 units/ml for 72 hours. Proliferation of lymphocytes was measured by tritiated thymidine incorporation after incubation with IL-2 for 72 hours. IL-1 beta increased the number of peripheral blood granulocytes and lymphocytes, but did not increase the numbers of monocytes and platelets. IL-1 beta significantly augmented IL-2-induced LAK activity in vitro, but this augmentation was neither accompanied by the increase of IL-2 receptor-positive cell ratio in peripheral blood lymphocytes nor enhancement of IL-2-induced proliferation of lymphocytes. Administration of IL-1 beta increased LAK activity of the patients, despite the fact that IL-1 beta did not increase LAK activity in vitro. The result suggests that IL-1 beta-stimulated LAK activity may be mediated by the induction of some cytokines in the patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)