The conglutination phenomenon. XIV. The resistance enhancing effect of conglutinin and immuno-conglutinin in experimental bacterial infections

Abstract

The effect of conglutinin and immuno-conglutinin preparations on the resistance of animals has been studied in seven bacterial infections. In six infections —Salmonella typhimurium, Pasteurella septica, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Listeria monocytogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus pyogenes—higher survival rates were demonstrated in mice previously injected with the conglutinin preparations.

Infection with avirulent strains or non-pathogenic organisms in numbers large enough to cause death led to severe toxaemia against which the injection of conglutinin preparations failed to protect. Although the conglutinin preparations failed to protect against avirulent or unadapted strains, they did protect against virulent or adapted strains of the organisms.

Experiments undertaken to define the protective factor in the serum preparations indicate that the protective factor probably is the same as that which is responsible for the conglutinating activity, conglutinin.