Patent ID: 7829302

Claim:
A method for detecting antigen-specific, activated lymphocytes in an organism, comprising: exposing test lymphocytes from said organism to a target antigen in a medium for cell culture in the presence of neutralizing antibodies against cytokines which can induce cell proliferation, wherein the target antigen is selected from the group consisting of a human histocompatibility antigen, an allogeneic antigen, a heteroantigen, a viral antigen and a bacterial antigen; determining activity in said test lymphocytes and in control lymphocytes from said organism by measuring a detectable signal, wherein said control lymphocytes are exposed to an irrelevant antigen or no antigen in the presence of neutralizing antibodies against cytokines which can induce cell proliferation; and comparing activity of the test and control lymphocytes, wherein a lower activity of the test lymphocytes compared to the control lymphocytes is indicative of antigen-specific activated lymphocytes in the organism.