Prolonged survival of rat renal allografts after multiple allogeneic pregnancies: strain specificity and role of erythrocyte antibody rosette inhibiting antibodies.
The influence of allogeneic pregnancies on the survival of subsequent rat renal allografts was investigated in three rat strain combinations. Multiple but not single pregnancies produced significantly more long-term surviving kidney grafts than were found in virgin animals; the effect was specific for paternal antigens, as multiple pregnancies by an unrelated strain did not prolong kidney graft survival. In the multiparous groups, those animals with long-surviving grafts had significantly higher levels of non-cytotoxic antibodies against paternal strain B-lymphocytes (detected by the erythrocyte antibody rosette inhibition assay) than did animals which rejected their grafts. The results show that multiple pregnancies may produce a state of specific unresponsiveness to paternal antigens, similar to enhancement, which is marked by the presence of non-cytotoxic antibodies against paternal B-lymphocytes. It is suggested, therefore, that enhancement may be one of the protective mechanisms which prevent rejection of the fetus during pregnancy.
D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006082:Graft Enhancement, Immunologic; D006085:Graft Survival; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D008297:Male; D010298:Parity; D011247:Pregnancy; D011272:Pregnancy, Multiple; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012397:Rosette Formation; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014181:Transplantation Immunology; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
D000906:Antibodies; D007518:Isoantibodies