Natural antibody to sheep erythrocytes in bursectomized chickens.

SummaryChickens surgically bursectomized 2 days before hatching or on the day of hatching were assayed at 4 to 6 wk of age for their ability to react with sheep erythrocytes. Bursectomized and normal, unoperated chickens were tested using immunocytoadherence technique, hemolytic plaque, serum hemagglutinin and hemolysin assays. These tests showed that both groups of bursectomized chickens possessed “naturally” occurring rosette forming and hemolytic plaque producing spleen cells in numbers comparable to those of normal chickens. The serum hemagglutinin and hemolysin titers also were of the same magnitude in bursectomized and normal chickens. From our results we suggest that bursectomy may deplete a population of antigen-reactive cells which are necessary for the propagation of a normal response to antigenic stimulation at 4 or more wk of age.