Immunological memory function of the T and B cell types: distribution over mouse spleen and lymph nodes.

Spleens from LAF1 mice injected intravenously with sheep erythrocytes (SE) are relatively rich in memory T cells early in the immune response (1 to 3 days) and rich in memory B cells as the response progresses (2 weeks or more). Marked cooperation for the secondary immune response in vitro was obtained by combining 10(6) spleen cells from LAF1 mice, taken 2 days after intravenous priming with SE, with 10(7) spleen cells from day 14 primed mice. The results indicate relative deficiencies in the spleen for B memory cells on days 1 to 2 and for T memory cells on day 14 after priming. Day -14, but not day -2, immune lymph node (LN) cells could replace the day -2 spleen cells (anti-Thy 1.2 sensitive) in the in vitro cooperation with day -14 immune spleen cells. Immune spleen cells taken 4 to 7 days after priming contain more equivalent numbers of B and T memory cells, but 10 to 7 days after transfer of such immune spleen cells without SE into irradiated recipients the T memory cells were again more prominent in lymph node and the B memory cells in spleen as shown by in vitro cooperation studies. These results suggest that during the second week after intravenous injection of SE relatively more T than B memory cells migrate from spleen to lymph node, resulting in an imbalance in the splenic memory cell population favoring B memory cell function.