Specificities of Killing by T Lymphocytes Generated against Syngeneic SV40 Transformants: Studies Employing Recombinants within the H-2 Complex

Abstract

T lymphocyte effectors to syngeneic SV40-transformed cells, generated by secondary in vitro sensitization of immune spleen cells, lyse SV40 transformed targets that are syngeneic at the H-2 locus. In this study we have employed recombinants within the H-2 region to examine in detail this H-2 specificity. H-2^b effector were found to lyse SV40-transformed targets from recombinants bearing either H-2K^b or H-2D^b. H-2^k effectors recognized only SV40-transformed H-2K^k, and not H-2D^k target cells. By using the same protocol for sensitization, no effector cells could be detected in H-2^d mice. Effectors generated in H-2 recombinant mice showed that the response capacity resides with K and D. For example, HTG, which is H-2^d except at the D locus (H-2D^b), produced effector cells specific for SV40-transformed H-2D^b targets. Thus, the secondary in vitro response to SV40 transformants was found to depend only on the K and D alleles and not to be modified by the I region to any measurable extent.