Liver Damage in Mice and Rats Causes Tenfold Increase of Blood Immunoglobulin A

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Abstract
Average serum concentrations of Ig[immunoglobulin]A and IgM of SDK rats were 0.27 and 0.43 mg/ml, respectively. Subtotal hepatectomy had no detectable effect on the concentration of IgM but IgA increased in 4 days to a level of 4.9 mg/ml. Thereafter, the concentration fell back to normal in 21 days. Serum concentrations of IgA, IgM and IgG2a in (C57BL .times. CBA)F1 mice were 0.41, 0.35 and 1.67 mg/ml, respectively. Neither hepatectomy nor CCl4 poisoning had an effect on the concentrations of IgM or IgG2a but IgA increased to 3.0 mg/ml (hepatectomy) or 3.6 mg/ml (CCl4 poisoning). Again the increase was reversible. IgA of normal rat serum was mostly monomeric (7S) and of normal mouse serum a mixture 7S and 9S (dimeric) IgA. After liver damage of either type the majority of the serum IgA had a sedimentation constant higher than 7S. It thus resembled the IgA that is brought to the circulation by the thoracic duct of rats and mice.