Prevention of Rh Isoimmunization
Progress Report of the Clinical Trial in Mothers
- Vincent J. Freda, MD;
- John G. Gorman, MB, BS;
- William Pollack, PhD;
- John G. Robertson, MD;
- Elmer R. Jennings, MD;
- John F. Sullivan, MD
- From the departments of obstetrics and gynecology and pathology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and the Presbyterian Hospital, New York (Drs. Freda, Gorman, and Robertson); the Ortho Research Foundation, Raritan, NJ (Dr. Pollack); and the Pathology Department, Memorial Hospital of Long Beach, Long Beach, Calif (Drs. Jennings and Sullivan). Dr. Robertson was a Wellcome Trust Research Fellow at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is now with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Edinburg, Edinburg, Scotland. Dr. Sullivan is now with the Department of Pathology, St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Appleton, Wis.
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
Excerpt
Many workers have shown conclusively that passive antibody is capable of specific immunosuppression of the active immunity that follows injection of an antigen.1-18 It is also clear from experimental results in mice that specific IgG antibody is from 100 to 200 times more immunosuppressive than specific IgM antibody.18 No attempts had been made to apply this very real immunological phenomenon as a means of immunosuppression for a practical purpose until in 1960 three of the authors (V.J.F., J.G.G., and W.P.) began a program to explore the possibilities of using passive antibody to prevent Rh-negative mothers from becoming immunized by Rh-positive fetuses.19-29 Our specific hope that the method might work for Rh was supported by the implications of Levine's observations30 and by actual experimental data of Stern et al,31 that circulating anti-A and anti-B antibodies actually do prevent Rh-negative mothers from being sensitized to the Rh
Footnotes
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Reprint requests to 630 W 168th St, New York 10032 (Dr. Freda).
