"Intrinsic" immunological tolerance in allophenic mice.

Mice experimentally derived from pairs of conjoined, undifferentiated, cleavage-stage embryos of different histocompatibility genotypes can retain cells of each strain, which still produce their characteristic antigenic products. The animals are permanently tolerant of cells of both original types, remain free of runt disease, and display a normal and specific immune response to introduction of a foreign antigen. Absence of autoimmunity in development of ordinary animals is explainable by the "intrinsic" kind of tolerance found here.