Evaluation of immune memory of human lymphocytes engrafted in SCID mice.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) isolated from 17 healthy subjects were engrafted i.p. each to an individual SCID mouse. After 48 hours the mice were tested for skin response to the common recall antigen PPD at various sites on the body periphery. In 8 of them PPD elicited a distinct positive skin reaction only at the abdomen. This procedure could provide a basis for detection of specific cellular immune response such as in autoimmune diseases.