[Regulation of antibody secretion: observation made on cultured lymphoid cells from immune rabbit lymph nodes].

Rabbits were immunized with soluble and particulate antigens (horseradish peroxidase or SRBC) in complete Freund's adjuvant. Four to twelve weeks after footpad immunization, popliteal lymph nodes were removed and the lymphoid cells were cultured with autologous serum for 5 to 7 days. Using local hemolysis assay, we observed a recrudescence of antibody secreting cells when the autologous serum present in the medium had previously been freed of antibody by specific adsorption. This phenomenon was not usually observed with cells cultured with pre-immune autologous serum or with unadsorbed antiserum. We will discuss the potential use of this model in dissociating the different factors involved in the regulating mechanisms of the humoral immune response.