Serum from CBA/J mice made amyloidotic by chronic casein injections has been shown to suppress in vitro antibody response to SRBC. Similar suppression was also found with normal mouse serum but to a much lesser degree. This suppressive activity of both amyloidotic serum and normal serum was removed by absorption of the sera with antiserum to protein AA, the major constituent of casein-induced (secondary) amyloid fibrils. This antiserum to the amyloid fibril protein AA (mol wt 8,400 daltons) detects an immunologically cross-reacting serum alpha globulin (SAA) (mol wt approx. 100,000). It is postulated that the serum factor (SAA) is a regulator of antibody response and may be present in elevated amounts as the result of chronic antigenic stimulation.
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Benson et al. (1975) studied this question.