Lymphocyte Transformation in the Guillain-Barre Syndrome

Polyneuritis and herpes zoster

“…Herpes zoster polyneuropathy develops after a variable latent period and, in the present cases at least, is due to demyelination of the peripheral nerves, a mechanism sometimes proposed in the more typical radiculopathy (Norris, Dramov, and Johnson, 1968). Both these observations strongly suggest that it is due to 'allergic' damage directed against an antigen in Schwann cells or peripheral nerve myelin, a mechanism similar to that proposed for other forms of demyelinating peripheral neuropathies-for example, acute post-infectious polyneuritis (Melnick, 1964;Knowles, Saunders, Currie, Walton, and Field, 1969;Currie and Knowles, 1971). The apparent-ly dramatic response of case 2 to ACTH also lends support to this hypothesis.…”

Idiopathic polyneuritis: serial studies of nerve and immune functions

“…Enhanced lymphocyte transformation on exposure of cultures of lymphocytes from patients with idiopathic polyneuritis to homologous peripheral nerve is recorded in the literature (Knowles, Saunders, Currie, Walton, and Field, 1969;Behan, Lamarche, Feldman, and Sheramata, 1970) and in this series. This method is thought to be a valid test in vitro for the presence of cell-mediated immunity (Mills, 1966).…”

Lymphocyte sensitization to nervous tissues and muscle in patients with the Guillain-Barre syndrome

“…The response to central protein is not surprising, since infiltrates of mononuclear cells and destructive changes are known to occur within the central as well as in the peripheral nervous system (Schmaus, 1904), though such changes are rarely prominent or of clinical significance (Haymaker and Kernohan, 1949). Failure to find stimulation by EF in our pre-vious work (Knowles et al, 1969) probably resulted from the relative insensitivity of the method and the technical vagaries to which it is subject (Hughes and Caspary, 1970). However, Behan, Lamarche, Feldman, Behan, and Kies (1969) did record stimulation with central protein, though in their cases a response to either central or peripheral protein did not persist after resolution of the clinical syndrome.…”

“…In an earlier communication we reported that lymphocytes from patients with this disorder were stimulated on culture with basic protein derived from human sciatic nerve (SNBP) and that the phenomenon persisted long after clinical resolution of the syndrome (Knowles, Saunders, Currie, Walton, and Field, 1969). This paralleled the persistence of lymphocytic infiltration in peripheral nerves for years after the acute syndrome (Asbury et al, 1969).…”

“…A more reliable and sensitive method has now been developed ; it depends upon electrophoretic slowing of guinea-pig macrophages in the presence of lymphocytes which have been stimulated by incubation with a specific antigen. This method has now been applied to the study of lymphocytes from patients with G-B syndrome including some of those featured in the earlier communication (Knowles et al, 1969).…”