Dendritic cells (DC) have been shown to efficiently present antigen to CD8(+) cytolytic T cells (CTL) when pulsed with apoptotic cells as a source of cell-derived antigen. Such cross-priming could not be detected by the use of necrotic cells, while conflicting results have been reported for cell-derived soluble lysates. In this study, we reinvestigated this issue by using autologous Epstein-Barr virus-transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) as a source of antigen to pulse monocyte-derived DC. Both autologous and HLA-mismatched allogeneic LCL have been used either in the form of apoptotic or of necrotic cells or of soluble cell lysates. At day 7, DC were co-cultured with the autologous CD8(+) lymphocyte fraction for an additional 9 days, in the presence of exogenous IL-2 (added after 48 h). At the end of the culture period, CD8(+) CTL efficiently lysed autologous LCL only when they had been co-cultured with DC pulsed with necrotic or apoptotic cells. That an efficient cross-priming of autologous CD8(+) cells could be induced by DC pulsed with apoptotic or necrotic LCL but not with cell lysates was further demonstrated in assays of IFN-gamma production in response to short-term re-stimulation of CD8(+) cells with LCL. In addition, LCL-specific CD8(+) cells could specifically lyse autologous DC that had been pulsed with LCL-derived antigens, further suggesting that DC presented exogenous antigens on HLA class I molecules.