We have analyzed the requirements of highly purified, resting murine CD4+ T lymphocytes for activation mediated by the lectin Con A and by monoclonal antibodies against the CD3 and Thy-1 molecules. Our results indicate that both the Ia-positive B-lymphoblastoid cell line M12 and its Ia-negative variant M12.C3 can provide the costimulatory activity necessary for these activation pathways. The costimulatory function is preserved upon fixation with paraformaldehyde, indicating that the costimulatory molecule(s) is (are) constitutively expressed on the cell surface. Our experiments also point to interesting differences between the M12 cell line and syngeneic Ia-positive antigen-presenting cells in generating a syngeneic mixed lymphocyte reaction. Finally, we show that the CD4+ T cell-M12.C3 cell interaction can be used to screen for interesting monoclonal antibodies that affect cell function.