Cells as Antigen Carriers and as Immunoglobulin Producers

Abstract

Tolerance induction and antibody formation appear to be alternative consequences of exposure to antigen. The decision between the alternatives depends, on the one hand, on the dose (1, 2), structure (3), and molecular weight (4, 5) of the antigen and, on the other, on the age, species, and immunological status of the recipient. While some of the factors which cause tolerance in adult animals have been explored in detail, little is known about the conditions which promote antibody formation after neonatal exposure to an antigen. To explore this further, we have injected newborn rabbits with small quantities of human albumin (HA) either in soluble form or in association with rabbit cells. The protein was either linked to rabbit erythrocytes by covalent bonds or taken up by nucleated ceils from the thymus, the lymph nodes, the peritoneal cavity, or the lungs. The cellular origin of antibody was determined by allotypic markers on the antibody molecules. The fate of the transferred cells in the recipient animal was followed by monitoring the ailotypic markers of the circulating immunoglobulin molecules. Materials and MethodsGlycogen.--Glycogen of cp grade was obtained from Pfanstlehl Chemical Co., Waukegan, Ill., and Fish Reagent Chemical Glycogen was obtained from Fish Scientific Co., New York. A 1% (w/v) stock solution of glycogen in glass-distilled water was prepared and was sterilized by steaming at 100°C for 30 rain daily for 3 consecutive days. Immediately before use a 0.1% solution was prepared from this sterile stock solution by adding 100 ml of the 1% solution to 900 ml of Baxter sterile nonpyrogenic normal saline (Baxter

Cells Involved in the Immune Response

“…They therefore concluded that antibody formation is a property of the donor cells transferred to the irradiated recipient. Our results using the rabbits are consistent with those of Mitchell and Miller (25,26) and Chou et al (21) in that they unequivocally demonstrate the host origin of the antibody-forming cell. Plaque formation was inhibited when spleen cells of irradiated recipients injected with allogeneic normal bone marrow and sheep erythrocytes were incubated with antiserum directed to the recipient allotype prior to the addition of complement to the plates.…”

“…One possible explanation for the lack of correlation between our results, those of Mitchell and Miller (25,26), and Chou et al (21), on the one hand, and those of Harris et al (27)(28)(29)(30)(31), on the other, may be related to the type of antigen used. The latter have used the Shigella as antigen and have assumed that the immune response induced with it is a primary one.…”

“…In fact, Sell and Gell (23,24) have already verified the potential immunological nature of such a system by demonstrating the induction of blastogenesis and mitosis in lymphocyte cultures incubated with specific anti-ailotype antiserum. Chou et al (21) transferred various antigen-sensitized lymphoid cells to neonatal recipient rabbits and concluded that the antibody-forming cell in the neonatal host was of recipient origin, and not of donor origin. Antibodies in the circulation of the recipient were purified by the use of specific immunoabsorbents and were found to react only with anti-recipient allotype antiserum in vitro and not with anti-donor allotype antiserum.…”