Enteric Bacteria as a Possible Cause of Hemolytic Antibody-Forming Cells in Normal Mouse Spleens.

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Abstract
The Jerne hemolytic plaque assay method readily detects antigenic cross-reactivity between sheep, goat and calf erythrocytes. Naturally occurring plaque-forming cells against sheep erythrocytes are more frequent in spleens of conventional colony mice than of specific-pathogen-free mice of the same genotype. Vaccines prepared from each of 5 isolates of Escherichia coli and Aerobacter aerogenes from the gastrointestinal tracts of conventional colony mice significantly increased the number of sheep erythrocyte hemolytic plaque-forming cells in the spleens of SPF [specific-pathogen-free] mice. The naturally occurring hemolytic antibody-forming cells found in the lymphoid tissues are probably caused by cross-reactivity between erythrocyte and bacterial antigens.