CELLULAR BASIS OF PERSISTENT TOLERANCE INDUCED BY AN AGGREGATE FREE HETEROLOGOUS IMMUNOGLOBULIN

  • 1 January 1977
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 33  (5) , 635-641
Abstract
Attempts were made to break the tolerance of lymph node B [bone marrow-derived] cells to deaggregated human .gamma. globulin. Using allotype-congenic mice, lymph node cells from virgin or tolerant (5 mg) CBA/Igb donors were transferred to normal CBA/Iga recipients and the proportion of responding donor B cells estimated 1 and 13 days later. The response of the non-tolerant virgin cells diminished with time but was still detectable at 13 days, whereas the response of the tolerant cells was ten-fold lower than normal cells at day 1 and was not detectable at 13 days. This functional deletion of tolerant cells was not reversed by enzymatic stripping of the immunoglobulin receptors before transfer, nor by removing T [thymus-derived] cells.sbd.which might have had a suppressor action. Igb mice were thymectomized or left as controls at various times before tolerance induction. Lymph node cells from these mice were transferred, together with non-tolerant Iga cells, to irradiated recipients. The cells from tolerant thymectomized donors strongly suppressed the response of non-tolerant cells, whereas the tolerant control cells showed no suppressor activity. It is considered that B cell tolerance can be maintained by somethin other than receptor blockade, or active suppression.sbd.although the latter can arise in some circumstances.