Maternal humoral immune response to incompatibility at multiple minor histocompatibility loci in mice.
Mice of the H-2b haplotype were mated with males of the same MHC haplotype, but differing at multiple minor histocompatibility loci. Mice were bled during each pregnancy and at 2-day intervals post-partum. The sera were assayed by indirect immunofluorescence for evidence of a humoral immune response to paternal minor histocompatibility antigens. Alloantibody was first detected in the post-partum period following the third pregnancy, and was also detected during the fourth pregnancy. Thereafter, alloantibody levels dropped and by the post-partum period following the fifth pregnancy, fell to control values. Assays on a panel of cells from mice of different inbred strains revealed specificity of the alloantibody to H-3.1, H-4.1 and H-7.1 antigens. A conventional dye exclusion cytotoxicity test revealed the pregnancy-induced alloantibody did not exhibit complement-dependent cytotoxicity. These findings are discussed in relation to the regulation and functional significance of the humoral immune response in allogeneic pregnancy.
D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D006183:H-2 Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D006238:Haploidy; D006649:Histocompatibility Antigens / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D007519:Isoantigens / Q000276:immunology; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000276:immunology*
D006183:H-2 Antigens; D006649:Histocompatibility Antigens; D007518:Isoantibodies; D007519:Isoantigens