HIERARCHIES OF T-CELL RESPONSIVENESS ARE REFLECTED IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF EFFECTOR T-CELLS IN VIRAL MENINGITIS

Abstract

SummaryThe vaccinia‐virus‐immune cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response, associated with H‐2Kk in B10, A(2R) [KkDb] mice, is much more potent than that occurring in the context of H‐2Db. This differential reactivity is true for T‐cells recovered either from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of mice injected intra‐cerebrally (i.c.) with a low dose of virus or from spleen populations primed by intravenous (i.v.) inoculation of a large amount of virus. Further stimulation of CSF inflammatory cells in vitro for 7 days under limiting dilution conditions indicated that the hierarchy of cytotoxic T‐cell activity was a function of the relative frequencies of H‐2Kk‐ and H‐2Db‐restricted lymphocytes. We theref..