Human immune response to allergens of house dust mite, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. IV. Occurrence of natural autologous anti-idiotypic antibodies.

IgG isolated from the plasma of seven individuals hypersensitive to the common house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (DPT) was exhaustively adsorbed onto insolubilized DPT. The unbound fraction was found by radioimmunoassay to contain antibodies recognizing the variable region of both anti-DPT IgG and IgE antibodies. This recognition was idiotype (Id)-specific as it persisted after passage over insolubilized polyclonal IgG of unrelated specificity. Most of these anti-Id IgG carried the internal image of the initial antigen in that they competitively inhibited the binding of anti-DPT antibodies to DPT. Immunoadsorption of anti-Id IgG onto insolubilized anti-DPT IgG antibodies from the same individual completely eliminated their reaction with anti-DPT IgG but not with anti-DPT IgE, suggesting that idiotopes included in the antigen-binding site of specific IgG and IgE antibodies were not identical. Anti-Id IgG recognizing idiotopes located outside the antigen-binding site (bystander idiotopes) were also completely removed by passage over insolubilized anti-DPT IgG; in this case the reaction of the anti-Id IgG with both anti-DPT IgG and anti-DPT IgE was inhibited, indicating that, for a given individual, bystander idiotopes were shared between anti-DPT antibodies pertaining to these two isotypes.