Lymphocyte Proliferation Test
The Lymphocyte Proliferation Assay (LPA) is a test used to measure the ability of lymphocytes to proliferate in response to various stimuli such as candida, pokeweed and phytohaemagglutinin. These plant lectins are carbohydrate binding proteins that bind to cell surface receptors and activate cells in an antigen independent manner. Most people will respond to at least one of several common microbial antigens. LPA can be used to measure improvements in immunological function following antiretroviral therapy and to detect the presence of immune responses against specific opportunistic pathogens.
The 3H-thymidine incorporation assay is used to determine the extent of cell division in response to a proliferation signal. 3H-thymidine which is a radioactive nucleoside and precursor of thymine found in DNA becomes incorporated in DNA strands of proliferating cells and can be measured to determine extent of cell proliferation.
