The Emergence of Antibodies With Either Identical or Unrelated Individual Antigenic Specificity During Repeated Immunizations With Streptococcal Vaccines

Rabbits from a variant strain called BASILEA, in which homozygotes express only lambda-type chains and heterozygotes have normal kappa/lambda ratios, were hyperimmunized with a streptococcal group A variant vaccine. Homozygotes (bas/bas) produced antibodies with lambda-chains, heterozygotes, however, produced predominantly antibodies with kappa-chains. The incidence of restricted high responders in the BASILEA strain was high; it was probably introduced by the original mutant rather than by the loss of kappa-chains (founder effect). The degree of heterogeneity of homozygotes is similar to the heterogeneity of heterozygotes, and to that of rabbits expressing kappa-chains. This suggests that in the rabbit, the repertoire of lambda-chain genes is of similar size to that of kappa-chain genes.

Section: Response Patterns Of Basilea Rabbits To the Streptococcal Avsupporting

confidence: 84%

Antibody response to the streptococcal group A-variant polysaccharide in BASILEA rabbits lacking kappa-polypeptide chains.

Weiß¹,

Kelus²,

Braun³

1977

“…Previous studies from this laboratory have shown that uniform antibodies to the streptococcal carbohydrates possess IAS (4), and that in a single rabbit, antibodies with identical IAS recur with repeated inlmunizations over an 18 month period (38), despite their absence during the interval between immunizations.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Inheritance of Individual Antigenic Specificities of Rabbit Antibodies to Streptococcal Carbohydrates

Eichmann

Kindt

1971

Self Cite

136

The inheritance of individual antigenic specificities (IAS) of rabbit antibodies to the Group C streptococcal carbohydrate was demonstrated in a selectively bred rabbit family. The IAS of the antibodies from 3 proband rabbits were also observed in the Group C antibodies in as many as 7 out of 42 related rabbits, but in none of the Group C antibodies from 48 unrelated rabbits, Immunodiffusion analyses and quantitative radioprecipitin experiments revealed that this cross-specificity may be either partial or complete. Quantitative inhibition of the precipitin reaction between the proband antibody and its antiserum by preimmune IgG revealed 30-fold differences in the proportion of molecules with cross-specificity for the proband antibody. This proportion is higher in the preimmune IgG of the proband rabbit and of those relatives which produced cross-precipitating antibodies than it is in the IgG of rabbits which had the same group a allotype, but did not produce cross-precipitating antibodies. The proportion is much lower in the IgG of rabbits with a group a allotype different from that of the proband antibody. These data suggest that serologically detected individual antigenic specificities are inherited markers of immunoglobulins.

“…The finding furthermore suggests that antibodies against the streptococcal Group A-variant antigen may be taken from a rare subpopulation. Persistence of Idiotypic Antibodies.--In an earlier experimental series, the restimulation of monoclonal antibodies specific for the streptococcal Groups A-CHO and C-CHO was magnified during a secondary course of immunization (40). This aspect was reinvestigated for 15 homogeneous Group Av-CHOspecific antibodies by analytical IEF and for K429-1 Ab, K429-7s Ab, and K6-89 Ab by both IEF and use of anti-idiotypic antisera.…”

Section: Hemagglutination Inhibition Analysis --Hemagglutination Inhmentioning

confidence: 99%

Idiotypic Specificity of Rabbit Antibodies to Streptococcal Group Polysaccharides

Braun¹,

Kelus²

1973

Self Cite

Myeloma proteins are known to possess individual and idiotypic antigenic specificlties (1-5), revealed by antisera raised within the same or a different species. Such specificifies have also been demonstrated on antibody molecules directed against various antigens (6-10). They are located in the Fab fragment of the antibody (6,(8)(9)(10). Since the individual antigenic specificity (IAS) 1 and idiotypic specificity (ID), at least in the early experiments (2, 6-8), were shown to be strictly individual and not shared by other antibodies of the same specificity, it was assumed that IAS and ID reflected the individuality of this antibody in structural terms.This original concept of the serological individuality of homogeneous immunoglobulins was curtailed by the observation that several members of a selectively bred rabbit family responded to the streptococcal Group C polysaccharide (C-CHO) with homogeneous antibodies of shared IAS (11) and the observation of cross-reacting IAS among several homogeneous antibodies of similar antigen specificities (3, 9, 12-14). Similar findings were reported for certain restricted antibodies raised in inbred mouse strains and mouse myeloma proteins with antibody activity (15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22). Even immunoglobulins with different specificities (23) were reported to share ID. This paper deals with the ID specificifies of homogeneous antibodies raised against streptococcal group polysaccharides in part-inbred rabbits. The data suggest that various degrees of cross-reactions m a y exist among Group A-variant antibodies in related but not in unrelated rabbits. Materials and MethodsRabbits.--Rabbits for immunization with streptococcal vacaine originated from two sources (24). Details concerning the relationship of rabbits whose antisera and antibodies were employed to explore idiotypic cross-reactions are presented in the pedigree (Fig. 1). In addition anfistreptococcal Group A-variant polysaccharide (anti-Av-CHO) antisera of 20 unrelated rabbits were used. Six Av-CHO antisera were raised in Dr. Krause's laboratory.