A monoclonal antibody (AE3.d3) with mitogenic properties for murine B cells

A monoclonal antibody, AE3.d3, derived from the fusion of rat splenocytes immunized against mouse brain with the myeloma SP2, has been produced, which has the property of inducing the proliferation of mouse lymphocytes. The mitogenic effect is highest in spleen and lymph node cells, where up to a 10-fold stimulation of 3H-TdR incorporation is observed. B lymphocytes are the most susceptible to this proliferative stimulus, and they are induced to differentiate into plaque-forming cells. T lymphocytes and "null" cells (defined by the absence of Thy-1 or Ig on their surface) do proliferate, although to a smaller extent. The T cell subpopulation, isolated from either spleen or thymus, requires additional "helper factors" in order to proliferate. The mitogenic response is not genetically restricted by H-2 type, and strains such as C3H/HeJ and CBA/N, in which B cell function is defective, as well as T cell-deficient strains such as BALB/c nude mice, are capable of responding to the stimulus of AE3.d3. Using immunofluorescence, we also examined the distribution of AE3.d3-positive cells in various lymphoid organs. The highest percentage of stained cells is found in the spleen (approximately 28%) and lymph node (18%), whereas only 14% of the bone marrow and 5% of the cells of the thymus are brightly stained with AE3.d3.