Immunization of susceptible BALB/c mice against Leishmania braziliensis. I. Resistance induced using as immunogen adherent or nonadherent cells from infected mice.

Strategies to produce resistance to infection with Leishmania braziliensis in BALB/c mice are described. Mice infected with virulent parasites were used as spleen cell donors (adherent/nonadherent cells) with which to immunize naive recipients which were themselves later challenged with the organism. Immunization with both adherent and nonadherent spleen cells (but not serum) in the presence of adjuvant led to protection. In the former case it seems that an immunogenic form of parasite antigen presented in the context of MAC-1+ adherent cells was responsible. In contrast immunization with nonadherent spleen cells depended upon the presence of Thy-1.2+ Lyt-1+ cells in the spleen cell preparation from infected animals. Immunization with adherent cells, but not with nonadherent cells, led to the development of a population of Thy-1.2+ spleen cells capable of adoptively transferring resistance to naive mice.