ANTIGEN-ANTIBODY COMPLEXES ELICIT ANTI-IDIOTYPIC ANTIBODIES TO SELF-IDIOTOPES

THE variable (V) regions of each immunoglobulin molecule carry unique antigenic determinants (idiotopes, Id)1,2. Anti-Id antibodies recognise not only the antibody, but also the V regions of antigen receptors on both T and B lymphocytes3,4, and it has been postulated that auto-anti-Id antibody5-10 (anti-antibody) may be an important homeostatic mechanism in immunoregulation11-13. An essential prerequisite for such a mechanism is that idiotypic determinants should be highly autoimmunogenic. In fact, although it has proved relatively easy to induce anti-Id antibodies by immunising allogeneic or xenogeneic individuals with immunoglobulins, induction of auto- or iso-anti-Id antibodies usually requires prolonged hyper-immunisation using potent adjuvants7,8,10. Recently, I showed that antibody, given as an antigen-antibody complex, acts as a very effective adjuvant for inducing immunological memory for antibody production14,15, and show here that antigen-antibody complexes also enhance the production of anti-antibodies. © 1978 Nature Publishing Group.