INFLUENCE OF SELECTIVE SPLENECTOMY ON SURVIVAL OF CARDIAC AND SKIN ALLOGRAFTS IN ENHANCED RATS

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Abstract
Pretreatment of LEW rats with donor cells and antidonor antiserum 11 and 12 days before transplantation, respectively, extends survival of (LEW .times. BN)F1 heart grafts from 1 to about 4 wk. Previous investigations showed that the spleen responds dynamically to the immunization regimen and to the graft itself by transient trapping of antigen-sensitive cells and massive proliferation of antibody-producing cells. In this study splenectomy performed before recipient pretreatment decreased graft survival. When splenectomy was performed during periods in which the spleen is responding substantially after immunization and after transplantation, graft survival was increased remarkably (MST [mean survival time] > 10 wk, with most grafts surviving indefinitely). Removal of antigen-sensitive cells trapped transiently in the spleen does not fully explain this striking effect, as an 11 day interval between pretreatment and transplantation was required for optimal graft survival in splenectomized hosts. Splenectomy was ineffective in increasing survival of skin grafts in enhanced animals, reconfirming the primary importance of the regional draining lymph nodes in rejection of these grafts.