Cellular Events during Induction of Immunologic Unresponsiveness in Adult Mice

Abstract

A specific and completely unresponsive state in adult mice was induced at the cellular level with ultracentrifuged human γ globulin (HGG). The cellular kinetics of induction of unresponsiveness were quantitated using a cell transfer system and the hemolytic plaque assay to detect plaque-forming cells to HGG. The results demonstrated that although 100% of the cells were not unresponsive until the 4th or 5th day after injection of tolerogen, 75% of the cells were unresponsive 6 hr following tolerogen. The kinetic curve did not reflect sequential induction to determinants located on the Fc and Fab fragments of HGG. Furthermore, the process of inducing unresponsiveness to HGG did not demonstrate antibody-forming cells detectable by the hemolytic plaque assay in the spleens of tolerogen-treated mice.