Postnatal decline of maternally acquired antibodies in the rat.
The decline (half-life) of maternally acquired antibodies of two different specificities (diphtheria and tetanus) was studied in rats. Essentially similar half-lives for antibody of each specificity were found in young rats from the same litter. In contrast, half-lives varied from 2 to 10 days in individuals of different litters. Significant differences in half-lives were demonstrated in young rats possessing markedly different initial titres of antibodies of the two specificities. It was established that there was a relationship between the half-life and the initial titre of antibody of each specificity which could be described by a rectangular hyperbola. These findings are in close aggreement with previous studies in human infants.
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000276:immunology*; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D004165:Diphtheria / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006207:Half-Life; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired; D007114:Immunization; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D013742:Tetanus / Q000276:immunology; D013997:Time Factors
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial