T cell-dependent helper and suppressive influences in an adoptive IgG antibody response

When immune spleen cells of mice immunized to a hapten carrier preparation 4 days previously were transferred to normal syngeneic hosts, they began to produce 7S antibody (presumably of the IgG class), provided that relatively small numbers of cells (about 1/10 spleen equivalent) were transferred. Increasing the number of transferred cells resulted in less IgG antibody formed. Depletion of the immune spleen cells of T cells by treatment with anti-theta serum and complement prevented IgG antibody formation. IgG antibody production by untreated and anti-therta serum-treated immune spleen cells could be enhanced (reinduced) by addition of small numbers of cells enriched for carrier-activated T cells. These suggest that T cells are necessary to stimulate antigen-activated B cells into IgG antibody production. Larger numbers of 'carrier-activated T cells' depressed IgG antibody production. Both enhancement and depression could be demonstrated to be antigen-specific. IgG antibody production high numbers of transferred immune spleen cells could be induced by treating the cells prior to transfer with suboptimal amounts of anti-theta serum and complement. It is argued that this results from the elimination of a T cell-dependent suppressor influence arising during a normal immune response.