Comparative Immunology. Active Immunization of Young Alligators with Hemocyanin. ∗

Abstract

Summary and conclusions

Alligators can be actively immunized with hemocyanin, a protein antigen, and the circulating antibody consists of at least 2 kinds of immunoglobulin that differ in electrophoretic mobility and perhaps size. Results indicate that alligators, in contrast to other reptiles, may possess a primitive type of immunological memory. Although the production of circulating antibody by the alligator was not unexpected, the nature of the immune response and of the anti-KLH immunoglobulins in the alligator appear to differ enough from that reported for other poikilotherms to warrant further study, especially from an evolutionary standpoint.