The heterogeneity of antibody affinity in inbred mice and its possible immunopathologic significance.
ininbred mice (Soothill &Steward, 1971). Thefour strains studied were selected because oftheir reported susceptibility to soluble complex disease following chronic LCM virusinfection (Oldstone &Dixon, 1969) andwesuggested that this susceptibility might be dueto inability to produce high affinity antibody.Thedatapresentedin this paperextend ourinitial observations to includemeasurementsofrelative affinity ofantibodyto HSAandtotal antibodyin ten strains ofmiceandincludestudies ofaffinity ofantibody elicited by immunization with DNP-HSAand DNP-rabbitserumalbuminconjugates. Antibodyaffinity is shownto be independent ofage andsex ofmouse, antigen doseandimmunoglobulinclass, andto berelated to strain ofmouseratherthan to type ofantigen.MATERIALS AND METHODSMiceEight inbred strains ofmice (SWR/J,