Regulatory idiotopes, parallel sets and internal image of the antigen within the polyfructosan-A48 idiotypic network.

The study of the A48 idiotype anti-beta 2----6-polyfructosan immune response was used as a tool to investigate the various postulates of the immune network theory. The results of this study have shown: that only certain idiotopes, designated as regulatory idiotopes, play a role in idiotype-regulated immune responses; that some of the A48 idiotopes were expressed on a myeloma protein with unknown binding activity (MOPC173) and on MOPC167, a phosphorylcholine-binding myeloma protein; that one out of six monoclonal antiidiotypic antibodies tested carried the internal image of the antigen and could elicit an antibacterial levan immune response in mice treated at birth with bacterial levan or polyclonal anti-A48Id antibodies.