Kinetics of antibody response in unprimed recipients after transfer of immune lymphocytes

Spleen cells from mice immunized with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) were transferred, at different times after immunization, to non-irradiated and lethally irradiated syngeneic recipients. The plaque-forming cells (PFC) kinetics and anti-SRBC antibody titres were observed in various groups of mice. Similar results were obtained both in non-irradiated and lethally irradiated recipients, showing that after the transfer: a) PFC proliferation was blocked, b) PFC blocking was unrelated to the maturation stage, c) remaining PFC were still able to synthesize antibodies, d) blocking activity was radioresistant. (author)