THE BACTERICIDAL ACTIVITY OF NORMAL GUINEA PIG SERUM AGAINST LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES AND ITS INHIBITION BY A LISTERIAL CELL EXTRACT,
Abstract
Normal guinea pig serum contains bactericidins active against Listeria monocytogenes. The listeriocidal activity of the serum did not increase after infection or after the injection of killed Listeria cells. It was destroyed by heating at 56 C for 30 minutes or by absorbing the serum with bovine serum albumin-antibovine serum albumin precipitate. The activity was not reduced by the addition of EDTA or heparin. Absorption of the serum with cells of Listeria, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli reduced the listeriocidal acitivity. Plasma was bactericidal to a lesser degree than serum. The activity of both plasma and serum was inhibited by the addition of a crude cell extract of Listeria, the mortalityenhancing factor. Lysozyme was not implicated in the bactericidal system. It was suggested that the bactericidal activity of guinea pig serum might be due either to a beta lysin-like substance originating from plate-lets or leucocytes or to the presence of antibodies produced as a result of contact with other Gram-positive organisms such as B. subtilis or S. aureus, which possess antigenic substances cross reacting with Listeria. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1963
- Accession Number
- AD0421486
Entities
People
- Lynn Elwell
- Sidney J. Silverman
Organizations
- United States Army Biological Warfare Laboratories