Characterization of "modified-self"-induced specific antibody hyporesponsiveness to herpes simplex virus

Pretreatment of mice iv with syngeneic spleen cells modified with soluble HSV envelope antigens induced an anti-HSV antibody hyporesponsiveness following challenge with infectious virus. The epitope density on the HSV-modified spleen cells was quantitated using a photon-counting spectrofluorimeter so that observed immunological results could be correlated with the HSV antigen dose on the splenocytes. The degree of anti-HSV antibody hyporesponsiveness was found to be related to the epitope density on the HSV-modified spleen cells, but not the number of modified cells used in the pretreatment over the 16-fold range tested. Anti-HSV antibody hyporesponsiveness was induced if 7, but not 3, days had elapsed between pretreatment and challenge. This antibody hyporesponsiveness could be adoptively transferred with T cells. Only mice that had induced an anti-HSV antibody hyporesponsiveness following pretreatment with HSV-modified splenocytes were able to survive an LD50 challenge with infectious virus.