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The exchange of tissues, most conveniently skin, between individuals has long afforded a means of evaluating their genetic identity or dissimilarity. The validity of the procedure depends upon the fact that in nearly all vertebrate species so far studied many different histocompatibility or H-loci, distributed on different chromosomes, determine isoantigenic specificities on the surfaces of virtually all nucleate cells of the body. The grafting of living tissue cells from a donor to a recipient of the same species results in rejection of the "homograft" unless the donor and recipient are members of the same highly inbred strain or they are identical twins.

The rejection of an organ or tissue transplant is immunological in nature and is the direct consequence of antigenic disparity between the transplant dotter and recipient. Cellular antigens, which differentiate individuals and cause the rejection of transplants, are defined as histocompatibility antigens. The immunologic properties of histocompatibiuty antigens are regulated by histocompatibility genes. The most comprehensive studies on the genetics of tissue transplantation were undertaken with the aid of highly inbred strains of laboratory mice. There evolved from a multitude of experiments performed in numerous laboratories a generally adopted rationale to account for the success or failure of tissue transplants.

This study provides evidence in mice of three strain combinations, that the classical law of transplantation that one gene ⇄ one antigen is applicable. It fails to confirm the suggestion that genic interaction may operate between the histocompatibility loci. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]