Mercuric chloride-induced anti-glomerular basement membrane antibodies in the rat: genetic control.

Mercuric chloride induces anti-glomerular basement membrane antibodies in the Brown-Norway rat. Various other inbred rat strains (Lewis, Wistar AG, August, PVG/c) were not found to be able to produce such antibodies under the same experimental conditions. Hybrids (F1, F2 and F1 x LEW) were bred from Brown-Norway and Lewis rats and injected with mercuric chloride. It has been demonstrated that the induction of anti-glomerular basement membrane antibodies by mercuric chloride in these crosses is under genetic control. The response was found to depend on two or three genes one of which was H-1-linked. The negative results obtained with L.BN congenic rats were in complete agreement with this conclusion.