[Demonstration and in vitro study of a complex reaction (rejection and facilitation) of the mother towards the embryo in the urodele amphibian Salamandra salamandra L].

Spleen cells from pregnant (but not from non-pregnant) Salamandra salamandra are cytotoxic in vitro for dissociated epidermal cells from their own embryos. Maternal serum inhibits this cytotoxicity. Analogies and differences are stressed in Salamandra salamandra between allograft rejection mechanisms and immune reactions towards embryos. They may contribute to an explanation of the delayed expulsion of embryos.