Recovery of B lymphocyte responsiveness after complete radioactive antigen suicide, and the affinity of antibody made after incomplete suicide

Abstract The adoptive secondary anti-DNP antibody response of primed spleen cells was specifically and lastingly inhibited by exposure in vitro to highly radioactive DNP conjugates. When the cells were treated with multivalent DNP-TGL 125 I, their responsiveness was almost completely inhibited, and took about 2 months to recover. The recovery was attributable to the transferred cells, since the contribution of the recipients was estimated to be small. Similarities to the recovery after tolerance are discussed. Incomplete suicide, after exposure to radioactive multivalent or monovalent DNP conjugates, affected the high- and low-affinity secondary antibody responses impartially. In a primary system, however, there was some indication that the antibody was of lower affinity after partial suicide than in control groups. The results are discussed in terms of the very high avidity of multipoint binding, and of the lower density of receptors on nonimmune B cells already postulated by Klinman.