Mechanism for induction of anti-DNA antibodies by bacterial lipopolysaccharides in mice. I. Anti-DNA induction by LPS without significant release of DNA in circulating blood.

Abstract

It has been demonstrated previously that there is first a release of DNA in circulating blood and then an induction of anti-DNA antibodies after injection of bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS) in mice. These two effects of LPS have been examined in the X-linked B lymphocyte immune-deficient CBA/N mice and LPS-low responder C3H/HeJ mice. The CBA/N mice and their (CBA/N × DBA/N) F 1 hybrid mice injected with 100 µg of Escherichia coli 0111:B4 LPS released DNA in circulating blood in a similar way to the normal CBA/J mice, whereas only the immunologically normal F 1 female mice developed anti-DNA antibodies comparable to the CBA/J mice. On the other hand, the LPS-low responder C3H/HeJ mice could neither release DNA in circulating blood nor induce an anti-DNA response to injection of 50 µg Salmonella typhimurium LPS, although they responded to injection of extremely high doses of LPS. However, after reconstitution with spleen cells or anti-θ-treated spleen cells from the LPS-high responder C3HeB/FeJ mice, the C3H/HeJ mice made a substantial anti-DNA response without a significant release of DNA in circulating blood after injection of 50 µg LPS. This indicates that the induction of anti-DNA antibodies by LPS does not require the release of large amounts of DNA in circulating blood.