The humoral response of mouse spleen cells to two types of sheep erythrocytes. I. Genetic control of the response to H and L SRBC.

Some strains of mice discriminate between two types of sheep erythrocytes (H or L-SRBC) and others do not. It is proposed that there are shared antigen(s) common to both H and L extra antig(s) present only in H. It shown that individual clones of antibody-forming cells make antibody to either the shared or extra antigens. These antigenic differences are not found to correlate with any of the known major sheep erythrocyte antigens. The genetic control of the ability to discriminate between these two types of red cell was investigated by an analysis of response of F1, F2 and backcross mice. The results suggest that the response is under multigene control. BL/6 mice give high responses to the extra antigens and low responses to the shared (high discriminator). DBA/2 gives high responses to the extra antigen (nondiscriminator). F1 mice give high responses to both extra and shared antigen but still discriminate between the two types of erythrocytes (low discriminator). Additional phenotypes appear in the F2 and backcross mice.