[Cytochemical study of acid naphthyl acetate esterase in the lymphocytes of healthy and bovine leukemia virus-infected cows]. / Tsitokhimichno prouchvane na kiselata naftilatsetatna esteraza v limfotsitite na zdravi i infektirani s virusa na govezhdata levkoza kravi.

ABSTRACT

A modified cytochemical technique was employed to investigate the unspecific acid naphthylacetate esterase of lymphocytes in the peripheral blood of a total of 64 clinically normal cows, having negative serologic and hematologic reaction for leukosis and of 42 cows with severalfold, well-manifested positive serologic response for the presence of the bovine leukosis virus with no changes in the hematologic data. With the normal animals an average of 6.86 per cent of the peripheral lymphocytes were found to be active--in the form of large dark-brown to dark red-brown granules--and such cells were considered to be T mu mature lymphocytes, while in 53.3 per cent of the cells activity was manifested in the form of tiny powder-like granules, and these were believed to be the Ty lymphocytes. Generally, 63.2 per cent were T-lymphocytes; the remaining 36.9 per cent of the cells had no activity typical for acid esterase, and these were considered to be B-lymphocytes. The study of cows with manifested agar gel immunodiffusion reaction for the presence of the bovine leukosis virus, with no lymphocytosis, revealed that there was a reliable rise of the T mu-lymphocytes up to 23.1 per cent, on an average, of the Ty-lymphocytes up to 69.2 per cent, while the percent of the B-lymphocytes dropped to 7.77 per cent, on an average.