Abstract
A series of biological test reactions was used in order to establish the presence of bacterial endotoxins in the blood of rabbits during the progression of hemorrhagic shock. 1. When the shocked animal was used as the test object, it was not possible to induce either the generalized Shwartzman reaction or the dermal Shwartzman phenomenon with exogenous endotoxin (S. enteritidis or E. coli) as one of the two provocative factors. 2. Epinephrine instilled into the skin of rabbits either before, during, or after an episode of hemorrhagic shock did not result in the hemorrhagic skin reaction which occurs in the presence of as little as 1 µg of endotoxin intravenously. 3. Passive transfer from a donor in the irreversible phase of shock of 20 to 25 ml of blood into a primed recipient (B.P. at 40 mm Hg for 1 hour) was uniformly lethal. 4. Similar amounts of blood from such shocked donor failed upon intravenous injection to elicit a protective hemorrhagic reaction in skin sites which were infiltrated with 100 µg of epinephrine. In the same animals 1 µg of endotoxin added to the blood samples caused a positive dermal response. 5. Blood was taken from rabbits which had been pretreated with S. enteritidis endotoxin and then subjected to hemorrhagic shock (35 mm Hg for 2 hours). Such samples upon passive transfer produced positive skin reactions in epinephrine sites but were not lethal to the primed test recipient used in these studies. It is concluded that the contribution of bacterial endotoxemia to the genesis of hemorrhagic shock remains to be determined.
Full Text
The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (546.3 KB).
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- FINE J., FRANK E. D., RAVIN H. A., RUTENBERG S. H., SCHWEINBURG F. B. The bacterial factor in traumatic shock. N Engl J Med. 1959 Jan 29;260(5):214–220. doi: 10.1056/NEJM195901292600505. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- LANDY M., JOHNSON A. G., WEBSTER M. E., SAGIN J. F. Studies on the O antigen of Salmonella typhosa. II. Immunological properties of the purified antigen. J Immunol. 1955 Jun;74(6):466–478. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- McCluskey R. T., Zweifach B. W., Antopol W., Benacerraf B., Nagler A. L. Pathogenesis of Experimental Shock: I. Absence of Morphologic Evidence for Bacterial Endotoxemia. Am J Pathol. 1960 Sep;37(3):245–277. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- RAVIN H. A., ROWLEY D., JENKINS C., FINE J. On the absorption of bacterial endotoxin from the gastro-intestinal tract of the normal and shocked animal. J Exp Med. 1960 Nov 1;112:783–792. doi: 10.1084/jem.112.5.783. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- RAVIN H. A., RUTENBURG S. H., FINE J. Host resistance in hemorrhagic shock. XIV. Induction of Shwartzman reaction by shock plasma and tissues. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1958 Feb;97(2):436–440. doi: 10.3181/00379727-97-23767. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- SCHWEINBURG F. B., FINE J. Resistance to bacteria in hemorrhagic shock. II. Effect of transient vascular collapse on sensitivity to endotoxin. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1955 Apr;88(4):589–591. doi: 10.3181/00379727-88-21662. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- SCHWEINBURG F. B., SHAPIRO P. B., FRANK E. D., FINE J. Host resistance in hemorrhagic shock. IX. Demonstration of circulating lethal toxin in hemorrhagic shock. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1957 Aug-Sep;95(4):646–650. doi: 10.3181/00379727-95-23316. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- THOMAS L., GOOD R. A. Studies on the generalized Shwartzman reaction: I. General observations concerning the phenomenon. J Exp Med. 1952 Dec;96(6):605–624. doi: 10.1084/jem.96.6.605. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- THOMAS L. The physiological disturbances produced by endotoxins. Annu Rev Physiol. 1954;16:467–490. doi: 10.1146/annurev.ph.16.030154.002343. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- THOMAS L. The role of epinephrine in the reactions produced by the endotoxins of gram-negative bacteria. I. Hemorrhagic necrosis produced by epinephrine in the skin of endotoxin-treated rabbits. J Exp Med. 1956 Dec 1;104(6):865–880. doi: 10.1084/jem.104.6.865. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]