PRODUCTION OF A RUNTING SYNDROME AND SELECTIVE γA DEFICIENCY IN MICE BY THE ADMINISTRATION OF ANTI-HEAVY CHAIN ANTISERA

Conventional Swiss mice were treated from birth with intraperitoneal injections of anti-immunoglobulins in an attempt to create an experimental dysgammaglobulinemia. Mice treated with anti-γM were immunologically suppressed in all immunoglobulin classes as determined by serum antibody titers, splenic plaque-forming cells, serum immunoglobulin levels, and immunofluorescent analysis of plasma cells in lymphoid tissues. Treatment immediately after birth with high concentrations of anti-γM leads to a developmental arrest characterized by severe immunosuppression, failure to gain weight, and premature death. The pathogenesis of anti-γM runting syndrome is unknown. Animals similarly treated with anti-γG, anti-γA, or control normal goat or rabbit γ-globulins developed normally. The frequency of occurrence and severity of anti-γM-induced runting syndrome is dependent upon the concentration of anti-γM-globulin administered. Administration of anti-γA resulted in a selective γA deficiency that was characterized by a marked reduction in serum-γA and an absence of γA-containing cells in the spleen. However, essentially normal numbers of plasma cells were found in the gastrointestinal lamina propria of anti-γA-treated animals concomitantly with suppressed levels of γA in intestinal fluids.