J chain-positive cells in bursectomized chicks

Using embryonic chickens treated with testosterone propionate, the effects of congenital absence of the bursa of Fabricius determined by the frequency of J chain-positive cells was examined in the spleen, thymus and bone marrow at the embryonic and newly hatched stages. J chain-positive cells in the chicks without bursa were reduced in the spleen. No differences in the numbers of the cells were detected in the thymus and bone marrow. These results imply that removal of the bursa of Fabricius cannot entirely prevent the generation of J chain-positive B cells. Furthermore, these results partly suggest the important role of the bone marrow in the proliferation of some J chain-positive cells in chicks without bursa.