Neonatal tolerance induction across H-2 mutational disparity: Induction and specificity of tolerance

Mutational disparities derived from alleles of the H-2K and H-2D loci vary widely in their ability to induce neonatal tolerance. The more subtle mutations, such as K^bm5 and K^bm8, proved to be excellent tolerogens, but the K^bm3 mutant (M505) turned out to be the poorest tolerogen yet studied of all H-2 alloantigens. By challenging tolerant animals with skin grafts from related mutants, it was found that expression of tolerance was highly specific. Although a minority of tolerant animals failed to discriminate between the K^b, K^bm5 and K^bm8 antigens, they never failed to discern K^b, K^bml and K^bm3 as distinctly different alloantigens.