Idiotype suppression. III. Induction of unresponsiveness to sensitization with anti‐idiotypic antibody: identification of the cell types tolerized in high zone and in low zone, suppressor cellmediated, idiotype suppression

Abstract

Abstract Unresponsiveness of strain A/J mice to sensitization with guinea pig IgG anti‐A5A idiotypic antibody is induced by prior injection of guinea pig IgG 2 anti‐A5A idiotypic antibody or unfractionated anti‐A5A antiserum. Two different forms of unresponsiveness could be induced depending on the dose of IgG 2 anti‐A5A: high‐zone suppression was maximal one week after injection, could not be transferred by lymphocytes and disappeared within 3 to 4 weeks. Low‐zone suppression took 7 weeks to fully develop and could be transferred by splenic and lymph node T cells. High‐zone suppression is expressed as transient unresponsiveness in both the A5A‐idiotype‐positive T helper as well as B precursor cell compartments. Low‐zone, suppressor cell‐mediated suppression is expressed as chronic unresponsiveness in the A5A‐idiotype‐positive T helper cell compartment only, whereas the A5A‐idiotype‐positive B precursor cells remain fully responsive as revealed by addition of nonsuppressed T helper cells. These data satisfactorily explain that suppression of T helper cell‐independent idiotypes does not involve T suppressor cells. However, since the presence of suppressor T cells is accompanied by selective unresponsiveness of A5A‐positive B cells, the data imply that idiotypic restrictions exist for T‐B cooperation.