The effect of disodium cromoglycate on in vitro proliferation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from allergic and healthy donors.

The effect of disodium cromoglycate on in vitro proliferative responses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy individuals, allergic patients with moderate serum IgE and patients with atopic dermatitis and high levels of serum IgE was investigated. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stimulated with mitogens (phytohaemagglutinin, Concanavalin A), recombinant interleukin-2, calcium ionophore+phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, purified protein derivative of tuberculin and allergens. It was possible to induce in vitro specific, allergentriggered responses only in allergic individuals with moderate serum IgE and not in individuals with atopic dermatitis and high serum IgE, Generally, whenever the stimulatory signal(s) caused a significant proliferative response, disodium cromoglycate inhibited the proliferation. This inhibition was seen for all activation agents and for both healthy and allergic individuals. By contrast, for certain non-or low-responders (both healthy and attergic individuals) disodium cromoglycate seemed to amplify the proliferation to various activation signals. Only non- or lowresponder cells derived from atopic dermatitis patients showed a biphasic kinetic response pattern when stimulated with the drug in combination with recombinant interleukin-2, recombinant interleukin-2+ ionophore or specific allergens.