Relationship between trinitrophenyl and H2 antigens on trinitrophenyl modified spleen cells. I. H2 antigens on cells treated with trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid are derivatized

Spleen cells were treated with TNBS in order to determine if cell surface H-2 antigens are derivatized with TNP. By labeling the cell membrane of the TNP-modified cells with ¹²⁵I, followed by detergent lysis and immune precipitation with anti-TNP, it was determined that no H-2 antigenic activity remained in the supernatant. Further, by the use of an antibody-induced antigen redistribution assay it was found that previous exposure of TNP-modified cells to anti-TNP in the absence of complement rendered these cells resistant to lysis by anti-H-2 in the presence of complement. Together these data indicate that at the concentration of TNBS used for modification, H-2 antigens are derivatized with TNP. However, in addition to H-2, other proteins including immunoglobulin were also derivatized with TNP. Anti-TNP cytotoxic effector cells were blocked from their cytotoxic activity by anti-TNP antiserum. These data indicate that TNP directly couples to H-2 antigens on the cell surface of TNP-modified cells and that TNP is associated with the antigenic determinant that the cytotoxic T cell recognizes.