Pregnant and pseudopregnant mice produce a low cytotoxic alloantibody response when challenged by fetal but not adult F1 alloantigens.
The tertiary cytotoxic alloantibody response of syngeneically pregnant, pseudopregnant and non-pregnant BALB/c mice immunised with semi-allogeneic lymphocytes from fetal and adult (CBA X BALB/c)F1 donors was investigated by the microcytotoxicity method. The pregnant and pseudopregnant animals showed a significantly lower response to fetal alloantigens compared to that towards adult alloantigens (P less than 0.001). In contrast, control non-pregnant recipients showed no diminution of response to fetal alloantigens. These observations suggest that the hormonal status of pregnancy, even in the absence of a conceptus, permits a low cytotoxicity antibody response when challenged specifically by fetal, but not when challenged by adult, F1 alloantigens.
D000818:Animals; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000276:immunology; D006824:Hybridization, Genetic; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D007519:Isoantigens / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D011247:Pregnancy; D011555:Pseudopregnancy / Q000276:immunology*
D007518:Isoantibodies; D007519:Isoantigens