Abstract
Wild house mice (Mus domesticus) captured in a Flemish pigsty were infected intravenously with 4 x 10(6) variable units of Mycobacterium bovis BCG and examined by Western blot analysis for IgG secretion against BCG culture filtrate (CF) antigens. Wild mice showed a marked individual variation in antibody pattern when tested 4, 6 and 8 weeks after infection. Some animals reacted to a wide range of antigens and others only to a limited number. Most wild mice recognized preferentially antigens with molecular weight of 24 kD, 32 kD, 37-38-40 kD, 65 kD and 82 kD, i.e. the major CF antigens known to be recognized by sera from BCG-infected inbred laboratory strains, BALB/c, DBA/2, CBA/Ca and C57BL/6. The 32-kD fibronectin-binding protein and the 65-kD heat-shock protein appeared as very immunodominant in wild mice. Furthermore, about 20-25% of the mice reacted strongly with a unique antigen of 35 kD estimated molecular weight, to which the tested inbred laboratory mice did not respond. Monitoring the size of the bacterial population in the spleen indicated that the BCG inoculum did not replicate in wild mice, suggesting that the Bcgr allele is expressed in this population.