The Response in Rabbits to Prolonged Immunization with Type III Pneumococci

Abstract

Every rabbit in a group of 17 animals immunized with formalinized type III pneumococci produced type-specific antibody of restricted electrophoretic heterogeneity. The critical factor in eliciting this response appears to be repeated antigenic stimulation over a period of many weeks rather than a particular genetic constitution of the animals. Over long periods of time and with continued immunization, restricted components appear and disappear as shown by 1) the appearance and disappearance of antibody populations of a distinct, restricted electrophoretic mobility and 2) the parallel behavior of the corresponding light chains. Two animals that produced extraordinarily high concentrations of antibodies (43 and 68 mg/ml of serum) showed clinical signs strikingly similar to those associated with multiple myeloma in man.