Open AccessTHE SITE OF ACTION OF IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE AGENTS IN THE PRIMARY ANTIBODY RESPONSE OF THE RAT WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO I g E ANTIBODY FORMATION
Author(s) -
Taniguchi Masaru
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
acta patholigica japonica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.73
H-Index - 74
ISSN - 0001-6632
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1827.1974.tb00836.x
Subject(s) - antibody , immunology , immune system , immunoglobulin e , cyclophosphamide , antigen , serology , stimulation , antibody response , cortisone , biology , medicine , endocrinology , chemotherapy
Serological and histological examinations were performed on rats that had been treated with one of six representative immunosuppressive agents i.e., X‐rays, BUDR, actinomycin D, cortisone, cyclophosphamide, antithymocyte serum, together with antigenic stimulation. These treatments resulted in either augmentation or suppression of antibody response of various immunoglobulin classes, primarily depending on the time when they were administered. Animals undergoing the immune response under the influence of immunosuppressants exhibited characteristic changes in the lymphoid tissues, which corresponded to the changes in serum antibodies. Especially, it was clearly shown that IgE antibody formation was most sharply influenced by the treatments causing the depletion of lymphocytes in the thymus‐dependent area of lymphoid tissues. The results were discussed with reference to the regulatory role of thymus‐derived lymphocytes (T cells) in the immune response.