title: Characteristics of in vitro production of antibodies to DNA in normal and autoimmune mice.
abstract: The in vitro production of antibodies to dsDNA was studied with spleen cells from normal and autoimmune mice. After culture for 4 days, the binding of dsDNA in the culture supernatant was measured by a radioimmunoprecipitation assay. The production of antibodies to dsDNA by spleen cells appeared at 15 hr after culture and reached a plateau at 24 hr. No antibodies were produced by thymus cells or splenic T cells. The specificity for dsDNA was shown by competitive inhibition with nonradioactive nucleic acids. Autoimmune strains of mice (NZB/NZW, BXSB, MRL/1) produced more antibodies to dsDNA than did several control strains. Young B/W mice and control strain mice produced mainly IgM antibodies, whereas older B/W mice produced predominantly IgG antibodies to dsDNA. The in vitro production of antibodies to dsDNA by aged B/W spleen cells was macrophage and T cell dependent.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000276:immunology*; D004247:DNA / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D008264:Macrophages / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008808:Mice, Inbred CBA; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D008814:Mice, Inbred NZB; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D004247:DNA