Studies on chemotaxis. II. The significance of normal sera for chemotaxis induced by various agents

Abstract

Fresh normal sera of rabbits, guinea-pigs, pigs, calves, sheep and men when incubated with complexes of human serum albumin and rabbit antibody induce chemotaxis of rabbit granulocytes in vitro. No chemotaxis was observed when such sera were heated prior to the addition of antigen—antibody complexes. Incubation of fresh normal rabbit serum with heat-aggregated γ-globulin, PPD, glycogen, Proteus endotoxin or heat-killed Staphylococcus albus results in formation of chemotactic factor(s). No chemotactic activity is found if these agents are incubated in inactivated normal rabbit serum or in serum-free medium. In contrast, the chemotactic activity of Witte's peptone does not depend on the presence of serum.