Inherited Alopecia Areata in Mice as a Result of Adoptive Transfer of In Vivo Mitogen-Activated Splenic Cells to Females During Early Period of Gestation.

Postnatal morphogenesis of the skin and its appendages were studied in the progeny of mice subjected during early gestation period to adoptive transfer of in vivo activated splenic cells. Reversible focal hair loss was observed on postnatal day 17 in the progeny. The number of hair follicles and sebaceous glands, the level of extracellular matrix, and the content of cells in the skin, including mast cells in the derma, decreased, while neutrophils prevailed. Alopecia areata was found in the subsequent generations after mating of male and female progeny. Hence, stimulation of the maternal immune system during early pregnancy led to disorders of the pre- and postnatal morphogenesis of the skin in the progeny and to development of alopecia areata that became an inherited sign.