The influence of the major mouse histocompatibility gene complex (H-2) on the response of mice to Friend leukemia virus was studied in F1 congenic mice differing only at genes within the H-2 complex. F1 mice which were H-2b/b had a high incidence of recovery from splenomegaly compared to H-2b/d or H-2b/a mice. In mice with recombinations within the H-2 complex a gene (designated RFV-1), responsible for the Friend virus recovery effect, was found to map near or within the D region of serologically detectable transplantation antigens. Because the incidence of recovery was much higher in F1 H-2b/b mice than in parental H-2b/b mice, other non-H-2 host genetic factors also appear to be important to expression of recovery in H-2b/b F1 mice. The mechanisms of action of these genes remain unknown.

H-2 dependent and virus-specific Ir genes regulate the generation of primary virus-specific K or D restricted cytotoxic T-cell responses in vivo. The following examples have been analyzed in some detail: first, Dk restricted responses to vaccinia in Sendai viruses are at least 30 times lower than the corresponding K-restricted responses irrespective of the H-2 haplotypes (k, b, d, dxs, dxq) of K and I regions; in contrast, LCMV infection generates high responses to Dk. These findings are consistent with but do not prove that this Ir gene maps to D. Second, Db restricted responses to vaccinia and Sendai viruses are high in strains possessing the Kq or KbIb, KbaIb haplotype, are very low in strains with Kk, and relatively low in mouse strains of the KdI-Ad haplotype; LCMV generates high Db restricted response in the presence of Kk. This Ir gene for the response to vaccinia and Sendai viruses maps to K since B10.BYR (KqIkdDb) is a responder and B10.A (2R) is a nonresponder (KkIkdDb). Third, virus and K or D allele specific nonresponsiveness is dominant with variable penetrance; in heterozygous mice the nonresponder Kk allele over-rides responsiveness normally found in KbDb or KqDb combinations. Fourth, when (responder X nonresponder)F1 lymphocytes are stimulated in an environment expressing vaccinia virus plus only a high responder Kb or Kq allelle and Db, response to vaccinia Db is high; in contrast when the same F1 cells are stimulated in an environment expressing the low responder allele Kk, response to vaccinia Db is low. Thus absence of Kk during immunization allows generation of high responsive Db restricted vaccinia specific cytotoxic T cells. The Dk dependent low response to vaccinia Dk can be explained by a preclusion rule or by failure of vaccinia to complex with Db; however the analysis of Kk dependent low response to vaccinia Db does not support these explanations or that self-tolerance is responsible for this Ir effect but is compatible with the interpretation that Kk vaccinia is immunodominant over Db vaccinia. These results are discussed with respect to (a) possible mechanisms of regulation by Ir genes and (b) H-2 polymorphism and HLA-disease association.

Eleven strains of mice bearing recombinant H-2 chromosomes derived from known crossover events between known H-2 types were immunized with a series of branched, multichain, synthetic polypeptide antigens [(T,G)-A--L, (H,G)-A--L, and (Phe,G)-A--L]. Results with nine of the eleven H-2 recombinants indicated that the gene(s) controlling immune response to these synthetic polypeptides (Ir-1) is on the centromeric or H-2K part of the recombinant H-2 chromosome. Results with two of the eleven recombinant H-2 chromosomes indicated that Ir-1 was on the telomeric or H-2D part of the recombinant H-2 chromosome. Both of these recombinants were derived from crossovers between the H-2K locus and the Ss-Slp locus near the center of the H-2 region. One of these recombinants, H-2y, was derived from a known single crossover event. These results indicate that Ir-1 lies near the center of the H-2 region between the H-2K locus and the Ss-Slp locus. The results of a four-point linkage test were consistent with these results. In 484 offspring of a cross designed to detect recombinants between H-2 and Ir-1, only two putative recombinants were detected. Both of these recombinants were confirmed by progeny testing. Extensive analysis of one of them has shown that the crossover event occurred within the H-2 region. (Testing of the second recombinant is currently under way.) Thus, in the linkage test, recombinants between H-2 and Ir-1 are in fact intra-H-2 crossovers. These results permit assignment of Ir-1 to a position between the H-2K locus and the Ss-Slp locus.