LYMPHOID ORGANS AND NORMAL GAMMA-GLOBULIN IN THE RAT.

Serum gamma-globulin was determined in adult rats several months after total thymectomy, subtotal splenectomy, or a combination of total thymectomy, subtotal splenectomy, and subtotallymphadenectomy. The thymus apparently is of little importance in the production of normal gamma-globulin, but it may influence the production of albumin because a reduction of serum albumin was only seen in groups where thymectomy was performed. The spleen seems to produce normal gamma-globulin to a greater extent than lymphoid tissue elsewhere in the body.