Induction or elimination of tumor-specific immunity against a chemically-induced rat tumor using auto-anti-idiotypic immunity.

DA rat sarcoma P1 and P2 were induced by dimethylbenz(a)anthracene. A tumor-specific immune response of DA rats against P1-tumor cells could be demonstrated at the humoral and cellular level. DA anti-P1 antibodies were purified on fixed P1-tumor cells and used as auto-immunogen in DA rats for the production of anti-idiotypic antibodies. Such anti-idiotypic antibodies could be demonstrated by using a solid-phase radioimmunoassay and by their ability to induce secondary type of DA anti-P1 response in vitro. In addition, such antibodies were able to induce cytotoxic T lymphocytes capable of eliminating P1-tumor cells but not control tumor cells. In some of the auto-immunized DA rats enhanced P1-tumor growth could be observed, indicating that the anti-idiotypic immune response had led to a selective ablation of idiotypic, potential anti-P1 reactive T cells.