To the Editor.
—Jagodzinski and coworkers1 have recently shown that autoantibodies can be produced in rabbits following brief but intensive localized freezing of parts of the male accessory glands of reproduction. Antibody levels of appreciable titer were obtained in seven out of seven rabbits when measured by the method of tanned cell hemagglutination. The immunological mechanisms involved cannot be fully understood. It was suggested that the process of freezing and thawing produced extensive rupture of cell membranes which resulted in the release of antigenic cellular materials (autoantigens) into the vascular system, which in turn stimulated antibody formation. It is possible that when the cellular materials became extracellular, they were altered and thus acted like foreign substances.Cryosurgical procedures are in extensive use in the field of ophthalmology, particularly for the removal of cataractous lens and fixation of detached retina. Freezing techniques have also been used for treating various other