In vitro immune responses of spleen cells from Friend virus infected mice.

Abstract

SUMMARY The primary immune response to sheep erythrocytes of spleen cells cultured from mice infected with Friend virus was compared with that of normal spleen cell cultures. Significant depression of the response, as measured by the production of haemolytic plaque-forming cells, was first observed when mice had been infected for 3 days prior to cell culture. This depression became more severe as the infection period was prolonged. After 4 days infection in vivo the peak of the in vitro response was reduced to a mean of 11% of normal values. No depression was observed during the first 48 hr of the development of the response in such cultures. The immune defect was shown to exist only in the non-adherent (lymphocyte-like) fraction of the spleen.