Negatively selected H-2(bml) and H-2^b T cells stimulated with vaccinia virus completely discriminate between mutant and wild-type H-2K alleles

Lymphocyte populations from B6.C-H2(bml)(K(bml)D^b) mutant mice cannot, after both in vivo and in vitro negative selection for alloreactivity, be induced to recognize vaccinia virus presented in the context of H-2K^b. This finding may mean that the T cell receptor(s) expresses a component that is very specific for a particular 'active site' on the self-H-2 molecule. Alternatively, (if recognition is directed at a virus-H-2 complex) the more similar 2 H-2 molecules are, the more likely it may be that precursor thymocytes in the mutant with the capacity to bind H-2K^b + vaccinia virus may be deleted during ontogeny as a result of cross-reaction with H-2K(bml) + endogenous antigen.