In order to investigate the effects of chitosan on the normal and cyclophosphamide (CY)-suppressed primary humoral immune response in mice, chitosan was orally administered alone (single dose of 62.5, 250 mg/kg) or with CY (20 mg/kg, i.p.) to female ICR mice on the 2nd day before or after immunization with SRBC-antigen. When chitosan alone was administered before antigenic challenge, splenic IgM plaque forming cells (PFC) and splenic cellularity were slightly increased and serum IgM was not changed when compared with control group. However, chitosan significantly enhanced PFC, serum IgM and splenic cellularity when administered after antigenic challenge. The PFC numbers, serum IgM and splenic cellularity were significantly decreased by the treatment of CY, whereas those values were slightly increased by the concomitant treament of CY and chitosan when compared with CY alone-administration. These results indicate that chitosan is able to increase normal humoral immunity (HI) and to slightly inhibit the suppressive effects of CY on HI.