Influence of Sex on Bone Marrow Transplantation in Mice With Induced Tolerance

Abstract

Summary

Mice of A/Jax and C₃H strains were injected at birth with bone marrow cells from females of the opposite strain in an attempt to induce “tolerance.” Skin grafting experiments demonstrated that both males and females so treated did acquire a slight degree of tolerance. When the partially tolerant female mice were used as donors or hosts in homologous bone marrow transplantation experiments (with the opposite strain), the date of appearance of the secondary disease was delayed, an effect attributable to acquired tolerance. However, when partially tolerant males were used, survival did not increase, but actually decreased. The animals died in a very short time, as if hypersensitized. It has been proposed that the “tolerant” animals are chimeras; if so, the male animals may contain female cells already hypersensitized against “male,” and these “hypersensitized” cells may be responsible for the short survival.