Differences in susceptibility of mature and immature mouse B lymphocytes to anti immunoglobulin induced immunoglobulin suppression in vitro. Possible implications for B cell tolerance to self

Abstract

Purified goat antibodies against mouse μ chains and rabbit antibodies against mouse Ig determinants, and their Fab fragments, inhibited the development of IgM bearing B cells in explant cultures of 14 day mouse fetal liver, and caused the disappearance of cell surface IgM in explant and dissociated cell cultures of more developed lymphoid tissues. While treatment of cultures of fetal or newborn liver, or adult bone marrow, with low concentrations (<10 μg/ml) of anti Ig for ≤24 h caused the complete, but reversible, disappearance (modulation) of cell surface IgM, treatment for ≥48 h produced irreversible IgM suppression. In contrast, anti Ig induced suppression of cell surface IgM in cultures of adult spleen or lymph nodes required much higher concentrations of antibody (≥100 μg/ml) and was always reversible. These differences between immature and mature IgM bearing cells could not be related to differences in the amount of surface IgM on the cells. The remarkable sensitivity of newly formed B cells to IgM modulation and irreversible IgM suppression when ligands bind to their Ig receptors, may have important implications for B cell tolerance to self antigens.