THE ROLE OF EXPERIMENTAL ALUMINUM INTOXICATION IN ALLOGENEIC IMMUNORESPONSE

To evaluate the immunological properties of aluminum (Al) in experimen tal Al intoxication in rats, we performed heart transplantation and in vitro experiments. Lewis (Lew) rats were intoxicated with intraperito neal injections of AlCl3. Heart transplants were performed using Brown -Norway (BN) rats as donors, Isotransplants and normal Lew were used a s controls, No differences in survival were observed. Unidirectional m ixed lymphocyte cultures (MLC) and Concanavalin A (Con A)-stimulated c ultures were prepared using spleen cells from normal and Al-intoxicate d Lew rats. No differences were found in unidirectional MLC, Intoxicat ed cells showed a less intense response to Con A than did normal cells , In conclusion, we could not detect an immunosuppressive role of Al i ntoxication in experimental cardiac transplantation or in MLC. However , the depressed Con A blastogenic response of Al-intoxicated cells may reflect an immunological role vet to be defined.