Abstract
Summary
The immunological reactivity of the thymus of young adult rats in which the gland was removed from its normal location at the fifth day of life and implanted in the subcutaneous tissue was studied. As compared with control groups, these animals showed a normal histological structure of their lymphatic organs and also produced normal levels of circulating antibodies after immunization with diphtheria toxoid. The autografted thymus, by contrast with the normally located gland, revealed a cellular response comparable to the one observed in the lymphatic organs of normal animals after parenteral immunization. The most remarkable feature of the cellular response of the autografted thymus was a marked plasma cell proliferation producing specific antibody, as was demonstrated by differential cell counting and immunofluorescence studies.
The authors wish to express their sincere appreciation to Dr. Carlos Martinez for his criticism of our data and to Dr. Stanley Lee for revising the manuscript.
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