ABSTRACT
Consistent with the Vb2 specificity of TSST-1, examination of the circulating lymphocytes from patients in the acute phase of TSS typically reveals a much higher proportion of circulating Vb2 T cells compared with cells using other Vb segments. As the illness resolves there is a gradual return to near normal proportions. The expansion in the numbers of Vb2 cells can be measured by examining the surface expression of T-cell receptors containing a Vb2 region using immunofluorescence (Fig. 26.3) or by semiquantitative measurement of mRNA transcripts encoding Vb2 T-cell receptor chains using reverse transcription and the polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) (Fig. 26.4).
