Anti-idiotype induced regulation of helper cell function for the response to phosphorylcholine in adult BALB/c mice

An adoptive secondary antibody response to phosphorylcholine (PC) can be generated by the transfer of keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH)-primed T cells, PC-bovine gamma globulin-primed B cells, and PC-KLH into irradiated syngeneic BALB/c mice. If the KLH-primed T-cell donors were pretreated with anti-idiotype antibodies directed against the BALB/c PC-binding myeloma TEPC 15, their T cells were unable to collaborate effectively with PC-primed B cells; moreover, they could suppress the helper activity of T cells from normal mice for the PC-KLH response. The Ly phenotype of these T cells was found to be Ly 1-, 2+. The specificity of the suppressor T-cell population induced by anti-T15 treatment appears to be both for idiotype (hapten) and carrier, since the suppressor T cells fail to interfere with the antibody response to PC on a heterologous carrier, nor do they suppress the response to trinitrophenol-KLH.