Zeitschrift für Immunitaetsforschung, Experimentelle und Klinische Immunologie最新文献

The experimental exposure of the pulpal room of rabbit teeth made it possible to apply an ovalbumin agar gel deposit into the pulpal room and subsequently investigate the immune response. Diffusion of antigen from the agar into environment was proven. After 3 weekly applications 5 rabbits showed hemagglutinatiog anti-ovalbumin titers between 1: 128 and 1: 512, while 7 rabbits receiving 10 weekly applications had titers between 1: 8000 and 1: 128,000. Control rabbits which received the agar deposit alone showed no antibody response. Control rabbits which obtained 3 identical weekly doses of ovalbumin in PBS by subcutaneous injection showed an identical immune response as animals immunized via the pulpal room. Specificity of antibodies was ascertained by passive hemagglutination with control antigens and hemagglutination inhibition. Intradermal injection of ovalbumin in 3 rabbits which obtained pulpal immunization, induced an Arthus reaction. The precipitating property of ovalbumin antibodies and their identity with defined ovalbumin antisera was proven by gel diffusion. The results obtained show, that antigens present in the pulpal room provide a strong immunogenic stimulus.

Immunization of females prior to mating altered the size of their litters and the incidence of postnatal death and runting, and the effect varied with the antigen used. Litter size was decreased after immunization with an aggregated synthetic polypeptide or with DNP-BGG, but not with aggregated insulin. Postnatal mortality was increased after immunization with an aggregated polypeptide, aggregated insulin or DNP-BGG. Postnatal runting was increased after immunization with the aggregated polypeptide or with aggregated insulin.

Antisera prepared in rabbits and turkeys against chicken brain were tested in membrane immunofluorescence and lymphocytotoxicity tests for their reactivity with thymocytes and cells from the bursa of Fabricius of. normal White Leghorn chickens. In contrast to the findings in mice and other mammals, these antisera did not afford any specific reaction with thymus cells after exhaustive absorptions of species specific antibodies with cells from various tissues. However, absorbed rabbit antisera could be shown to react specifically with cells from the granulocytic series in the bone marrow and, to a lesser extent, in the peripheral blood of chickens.

Unpurified lymphocytes from spleen, lymph nodes, thymus, and T and B cellenriched fractions of spleen cells from NMRI mice as well as lymphocytes of nude mice were cultured and stimulation of the lymphocytes by DEAF-D, Con A and LPS and combinations thereof was measured by incorporation of ₃H-thymidine.

It was demonstrated that DEAE-D is a rather weak mitogen for mouse lymphocytes, acting apparently on B cells as well as on T cells. Frequency and intensity of lymphocyte stimulation by the T cell mitogen Con A and the B cell mitogen LPS was much better.

When combinations of DEAE-D with Con A or LPS, respectively, were used significant enhancement of lymphocyte stimulation occurred, as compared to the mitogns and DEAE-D alone. This enhancement was more prominent with the DEAE-D/Con A combination than with the DEAE-D/LPS combination, and more pronounced with the T cell-rich lymphocyte preparations than with the B cell-rich suspensions.

The results are discussed and it is concluded that DEAE-D enhances both T cell and B cell functions, however, T cell functions are favoured. This enhancement is assumed to be mediated by a membrane effect of DEAE-D, and to be responsible for the immunological adjuvant effect of DEAE-D.