Role of the endothelial antigen Eag-1 in the rejection of rat kidney allografts.

The immunogenicity of the minor histocompatibility antigen Eag-1 of the rat kidney endothelium was studied in renal allografts mismatched for antigens of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). The rejection rates of BN.1L (RT1(1), Eag-1+), (BN.1LXMAXX)F1 (RT1l/n, Eag-1+), and LEW (RT1l, Eag-1-) kidneys transplanted into unsensitized, bilaterally nephrectomized MAXX (RT1n, Eag-1-) recipients were comparable, indicating that incompatibility for Eag-1 has no effect on the survival of MHC-incompatible kidney grafts. Transplantation of BN (RT1n, Eag-1+) and WKY (RT1k, Eag-1+) kidneys into unilaterally nephrectomized MAXX recipients led to a weak and inconsistent antibody response against Eag-1, indicating that MHC incompatibility does not influence the formation of antibodies against Eag-1.