Figure 7

Effect of lipid-loading on the capability of M-MØ and GM-MØ to support T cell proliferation. For each experiment, M-MØ and GM-MØ were prepared from a buffy coat derived from a single human donor. The macrophages were incubated in the absence or presence of acetyl-LDL (25 µg/mL) for 24 h in serum-free DMEM, after which the cells were washed, autologous T cells were added and co-cultured in the presence or absence of 10 µg/mL phytohemagglutinin (PHA). As a control, the T cells were cultured alone (grey bars). After 4 days, the T cell numbers in the medium were counted. T cell proliferation was expressed as a stimulation index defined as a ratio obtained by dividing the number of viable T cells in the presence of macrophages by the number of viable T cells in the absence of macrophages. Data (means ± SEM) are derived from triplicate wells and correspond to 3 monocyte donors. *p < 0.05 by Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test for paired samples.