Cancer Immunology Program, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Locked Bag 1, A'Beckett Street, Melbourne, 8006, Australia. nigel.waterhouse@petermac.org.
During cytotoxic lymphocyte (CL) mediated killing of target cells, granzyme B is released from the CL into the immune synapse. Recent studies have found that ELISPOT-detection of granzyme B correlated well with conventional assays for CL mediated killing. In this way, the released granzyme B can be used to mark the spot where a target cell was murdered. We discuss the benefits and potential limitations of using this assay to measure CL mediated killing of target cells.