A subpopulation of lymphocytes with T and B cell characteristics. Observations on two different cases of immunodeficiency.

We present the immunological studies on 2 patients, one with the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome and another with common variable hypogammaglobulinemia. Although these patients represent two different immunodeficiency defects, both had a subpopulation of peripheral lymphocytes which had simultaneously T and B characteristics. Their peripheral blood mononuclear cells had a low responsiveness to polyclonal mitogens. We suggest that these unusual cells represent a subpopulation of suppressor cells or of immature T cells, which may have an essential role in the pathogenesis of these immunodeficiencies.