Allograft rejection and alloimmune memory in the solitary urochordate, Styela plicata

• Published in: Developmental and comparative immunology Vol. 11; no. 2; pp. 343 - 351
• Main Authors: RAFTOS, D. A, TAIT, N. N, BRISCOE, D. A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Science 1987
• Subjects: Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Graft Rejection; Histocompatibility; Immunologic Memory; Invertebrates; Less representative or incertae sedis groups: acanthocephala, chaetognatha, gnathostomulida, lophophoria, merostomata, mesozoa, myxozoa, nematorhyncha, pararthropoda, placozoa, priapuloidea, prochordata, pycnogonida, rotifera; Styela plicata; Time Factors; Transplantation, Homologous; Urochordata - immunology; Marine environment; Rejection; Immunological memory; Histocompatibility system; Homograft; Graft; Prochordata; Invertebrata; Immunity; Urochordata
• ISSN: 0145-305X; 1879-0089
• DOI: 10.1016/0145-305X(87)90078-4

The responses of the solitary urochordate, Styela plicata, to first- and second-set tunic grafts confirm the existence of a sensitive histocompatibility system. Most first-set allografts were eliminated (median rejection time, RT50, of 38.2 +/- 5.9 days) whereas the majority of autografts remained viable. Allograft rejection exhibited significant memory with second-set allografts being lost far more rapidly (RT50 = 22.0 +/- 2.6 days) than first-set allografts. This alloimmune memory was shown to survive for up to 50 days after first-set rejection. Furthermore, 3rd party grafting indicated that memory was specific to the presensitizing tissue type. These results are discussed in terms of the evolution of vertebrate immunity.