Elaboration of systemic immunity following inner ear immunization.

The development of systemic humoral and cellular immunity following antigen presentation in the inner ear was compared with that seen following middle ear and peritoneal inoculation routes. Antibody developing against keyhole limpet hemocyanin was measured by a sensitive enzyme-linked immunofiltration assay, and cell-mediated immunity was measured by in vitro lymphocyte blastogenesis. The inner ear and peritoneal routes of antigen presentation resulted in a parallel rise in antibody over a 3-week period. In contrast, the middle ear route resulted in a weak, transient antibody response by 2 weeks. The acquisition of cell-mediated immunity occurred earliest (day 14) in the group receiving antigen intraperitoneally. A significant but smaller proliferative response was also seen in the group receiving antigen via the inner ear route on days 14 and 21. In contrast, the middle ear route failed to result in cell-mediated immunity. These studies indicate that the inner ear is an effective route of antigen processing which results in the acquisition of systemic humoral and cellular immunity. The development of systemic immunity, in turn, has been found to be protective of the inner ear.