Antibody response to myelin basic protein: comparisons between Lewis rats with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, and tolerant rats.

The hemagglutinating antibody responses of Lewis rats with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) and of rats rendered unresponsive to this autoimmune disease by pretreatment with myelin basic protein (BP) were compared. Most tolerant animals produced low levels of hemagglutinating antibody. Similarly, most rats with EAE also produced anti-BP antibodies. We were unable to correlate hemagglutinin production or titer with protection against disease. Hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) studies reveal cross-reactivity between rat, guinea pig and bovine BP. HAI studies with BP-derived peptides suggest that at least three distinct antibody-binding determinants exist in the BP molecule, and that individual inbred Lewis rats respond differently with respect to antibody production to these sites.