Immunoglobulin production by murine B-lymphoma cells

Immunoglobulin (Ig) synthesis and surface expression was studied in a variety of lymphomas of B-cell lineage, several of them in continuous cell culture. These studies included the use of immunofluorescence and flow cytometry, lactoperoxidase cell surface iodination, metabolic labeling with [75Se]selenomethionine, and solid-state immunoadsorption for the isolation of labeled Ig. Data thus obtained were used to place these lymphomas into one of three categories of preplasmacyte B lymphoma: (i) no detectable secretion or surface expression of Ig (ABE-8, WEHI-214); (ii) expression of high density membrane IgM, but no secretion of Ig (WEHI-231, WEHI-279); (iii) expression of membrane Ig of one of various isotypes (IgM in the case of WEHI-301, IgG2 in that of 2PK-3) with secretion of moderate amounts of Ig. A fourth category is represented by many known plasmacytomas, which typically show little or no surface Ig, but have a high rate of Ig secretion. This series of tumors is considered of great interest for the study of B-cell differentiation and triggering.