Fetal kidneys and placentas obtained from female mice of the DDN strain mated with male mice of the SWISS strain were transplanted to the abdominal walls of the DDN female mice in the following manner.
Group A: the grafts were the fetal kidneys and the placentas, and the recipients were the mother mice.
Group B: the grafts were the placentas, and the recipients were the mother mice.
Group C: the grafts were the fetal kidneys, and the recipients were the mother mice.
Group D: the grafts were the fetal kidneys, and the recipients were the unrelated pregnant mice.
Group E: the grafts were the fetal kidneys, and the recipients were the virgin mice.
In group A, B and C, the animals were sacrificed 28, 56 and 100 days after transplantation. In groups D and E, the animals were sacrificed 28 days after transplantation. The survival rates of grafts decreased as time passed. In group A, some placentas and kidneys and in C, some kidneys survived for 100 days. The placentas which were transplanted with kidneys, showed high sur-vival rate (44%) at 100th day, but the survival rate was much lower when the placentas were transplanted alone. The survival rates of fetal kidneys trans-planted to their mothers were higher than those of the kidneys transplanted to unrelated recipients, and pregnancy did not influence the survival rate. In groups C, D and E, necrotic and granulomatous lesions were far more frequently ob-served than in group A. It was concluded that not only fetal tissues would support placentas to survive but placentas would also support fetal tissue to survive.
The helpful advice of Associate professor H. Sakaguchi, Keio University, is herewith acknowledged.
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