Premium
THE CLONAL NATURE OF ALLO‐ANTIGEN‐SENSITIVE SMALL LYMPHOCYTES IN THE RECIRCULATING POOL OF NORMAL RATS
Author(s) -
Dorsch Susan,
Roser B
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
australian journal of experimental biology and medical science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.999
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1440-1711
pISSN - 0004-945X
DOI - 10.1038/icb.1974.4
Subject(s) - thoracic duct , antigen , biology , population , clone (java method) , lymphatic system , lymph , immunology , antibody , transplantation , lymph node , microbiology and biotechnology , pathology , medicine , gene , genetics , environmental health
Summary Small lymphocytes of the recirculating pool are competent to mediate the rejection of first‐set allografts. As a population, these cells are multicompetent, i.e. they can procure the rejection of a variety of antigenically distinct grafts. The basis of this multicompetence was shown to be the admixture, within the population, of separate, clones of allo‐antigen‐sensitive cells, each competent against one set of allo‐antigens. This was done using supralethally irradiated rats as biological filters for large inocula of thoracic duct lymphocytes, and assaying the competence of those, cells which successfully recirculated from the blood to the lymph. When recovered from the lymph of allogeneic “passage” rats, these cells were specifically depleted of the clone of cells competent against “passage” allo‐antigens. This clone of cells was recovered from the lymphoid tissues of the passage animal at the time when it was missing from the lymph. It was possible to exclude antibody mediated enhancement or the induction of conventional transplantation tolerance as explanations for the specific defect in reactivity suffered by passaged thoracic duct lymphocytes. The reproducible sequestration of specific allo‐antigen‐sensitive cells which occurred in supralethally irradiated passage rats with a variety of donor‐host combinations is interpreted as confirming the clonal nature of the cells sensitive to Ag‐B allo‐antigenic specificities among the small lymphocytes in the recirculating pool of normal rats.