Phenotypic and Functional Characterization of Natural Killer Cells by Monoclonal Antibodies¹

Publisher Summary

This chapter discusses phenotypic and functional characterization of natural killer (NK) cells by monoclonal antibodies. Large granular lymphocytes (LGL), which can be purified by Percoll gradient centrifugation, have been described to be responsible for NK cell activity. The lineage of these NK cells continues, however, to be an unresolved question despite the fact that highly purified NK cells can be obtained. It has been demonstrated using monoclonal antibodies that these highly purified cells shared certain surface determinants with T cells, monocytes, and myeloid cells. Using peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL), it has been demonstrated that NK activity can be reduced using selected monoclonal antibodies when employed in conjunction with complement. The aim of the study presented in this chapter was to employ a selected panel of monoclonal antibodies to characterize the phenotypes of highly purified endogenous and interferon (IFN)-activated LGLs. The effect of these reagents on the functional properties of LGL at the single-cell level was also investigated. The results demonstrated that the OKT10 antibody was capable of interfering with the killing of K562 tumor target cells at the single-cell level.