Antisera to mast cells and the receptor for IgE.

Recent studies on the receptor for IgE on rat mast cells and rat basophilic leukemia cells have established that this receptor has a molecular weight of about 60,000 daltons and is, at least in part, a protein. However, so far no antisera, monospecific for this receptor, are available. Only antisera to mast cells have been described. Such antisera are capable of releasing histamine from mast cells, but only in the presence of complement. In most instances such antisera were not specific for mast cells only, but in some cases they were rendered specific by absorption with lymph node cells or liver cells. One report demonstrates that such an absorbed antiserum was capable of inhibiting the binding of IgE to mast cells. Moreover, it precipitated several mast cell surface components. One of these possibly was the receptor for IgE.