Effect of Neonatal Injections of Protein on the Immune Response to Protein-Hapten Complexes.

Thirteen out of fourteen normal mature rabbits injected with sulphanilazo-human-serum-albumin produced antibodies against sulphanilic acid. In contrast, out of fifteen mature rabbits which had received human serum albumin at birth, none produced detectable antibodies to sulphanilic acid after injections of the sulphanilazo-human-serum-albumin. Fourteen out of fifteen normal mature rabbits produced antibodies to sulphanilic acid after injections of sulphanilazo-rabbit-serum-albumin. One out of nine mature rabbits which had been injected neonatally with sulphanilic acid produced antibodies against the hapten when immunized with the sulphanilazo-human-serum-albumin. The implications of these results are discussed in relation to some current views on antibody formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]