title: Idiotype-restricted antibody response to specific immune complexes.
abstract: In this report, we compared the immunogenicity of specific antigen/antibody complexes with that of free antigen. The complexes were prepared in antigen excess using the TEPC-15 myeloma protein and a phosphorylcholine-containing polysaccharide antigen (PnC), and the PnC-specific antibody response was measured using a hemolytic plaque assay 5 days after immunization. The results showed that the complexes were as immunogenic as the free antigen; however, the PnC-specific antibody response induced with the complexes was completely dominated by one particular idiotope (defined by plaque inhibition with the AB1-2 monoclonal antibody). On the other hand, the response of mice immunized with free antigen (PnC) was dominated to a lesser degree by the AB1-2 idiotope, and there was a great degree of variability in idiotope expression among individual mice. The results suggest that immunization with antigen/antibody complexes restricts the response to the expression of idiotopes that are present in the immune complex.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex / Q000276:immunology*; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D007116:Immunization, Passive; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C / Q000276:immunology; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial