Behavior of the idiotypic network in conventional immune responses. II. Affinity and heterogeneity of idiotypic and anti-idiotypic antibodies following immunization with T-independent and T-dependent antigens.
The relative affinity and heterogeneity of affinity of idiotypic and anti-idiotypic antibodies in mice immunized with the T-independent antigen DNP-Ficoll and the T-dependent antigen DNP-HGG were measured by a plaque inhibition assay. Idiotypic plaque-forming cells (PFC) were detected by a conventional assay utilizing DNP-coated SRBC. Anti-idiotypic PFC were detected with SRBC coated with affinity-purified anti-DNP antibody of rabbit origin. It was found that both idiotypic and anti-idiotypic antibodies elicited by immunization with the T-independent antigen had lower affinity and were less heterogeneous than the corresponding antibodies originating in mice immunized with the T-dependent antigen. In addition, the affinity and heterogeneity values of the idiotypic antibodies were correlated with the affinity and heterogeneity values of the anti-idiotypic antibodies from the same mice. This finding indicates that idiotypic and anti-idiotypic antibodies mutually regulate each other, thus pointing to internal immunoregulatory effects of the idiotypic network with respect to these parameters.
Segre
M
M
Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Illinois, Urbana 61801.
Weigel
R M
RM
Schlueter
A J
AJ
Segre
D
D
D000818:Animals; D000888:Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic / Q000276:immunology*; D000915:Antibody Affinity; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D000941:Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D000955:Antigens, T-Independent / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D005362:Ficoll / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000276:immunology; D007114:Immunization; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D005719:gamma-Globulins / Q000276:immunology
D000888:Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic; D000941:Antigens; D000955:Antigens, T-Independent; C031007:DNP-Ficoll; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes; D005719:gamma-Globulins; D005362:Ficoll