Journal of leukocyte biology
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The CD14+CD16+ monocytes appear to be important to immune defense against infection, as these cells are very potent with respect to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production, phagocytosis, and antigen presentation. Myeloablative high-dose chemotherapy (HDT) and subsequent autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT) are being used increasingly for therapy of hematological malignancies, but the pronounced immunosuppression renders the patients prone to infection. To determine the functional properties of CD14+CD16+ monocytes under these conditions, 15 patients with lymphoma or myeloma were examined. ⋯ The median fluorescence intensity of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR expression on the CD14+CD16+ monocytes increased from 11 +/- 6 before Tx to 17 +/- 11 after Tx, and the production of TNF after lipopolysaccharide showed no remarkable difference (46+/-13 vs. 49+/-14 channels). At the same time, expression of TNF and of HLA-DR showed a dramatic decrease in the CD14++ monocytes. Taken together after stem-cell Tx, the function of the CD14++ monocytes is impaired, and the functional properties of CD14+CD16+ monocytes recover, indicating that these cells may be important for defense against infections post-ASCT.