Skip to main content
PMC home page
The Journal of Experimental Medicine logoLink to The Journal of Experimental Medicine
. 1965 Oct 1;122(4):733–744. doi: 10.1084/jem.122.4.733

THE BACTERIAL INDUCTION OF HOMOGRAFT SENSITIVITY

II. EFFECTS OF SENSITIZATION WITH STAPHYLOCOCCI AND OTHER MICROORGANISMS

Felix T Rapaport 1, Randolph M Chase Jr 1
PMCID: PMC2138093  PMID: 4379017

Abstract

Heat-killed strains of Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus albus can induce in guinea pigs a state of altered reactivity to skin homografts which is indistinguishable from that which results from sensitization with homologous tissues or Group A streptococci. Challenge of suitably prepared recipients with first-set skin homografts obtained from unrelated randomly selected donors elicits white graft reactions or accelerated rejection of such grafts. Other bacteria tested included Lancefield streptococcal groups B, C, D, E, G, H, L, and O, pneumococcus Types II, III, XIV and a rough strain, Corynebacterium xerosis, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Aerobacter aerogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, Proteus vulgaris, Neisseria catarrhalis, Haemophilus influenzae, and two human virulent strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. None of these microorganisms was active in the induction of homograft sensitivity in the guinea pig. Pretreatment of recipients with Gram-negative bacterial suspensions was associated with a slight increase in the mean survival time of first-set skin homografts. Results of this study suggest the presence in staphylococci, as well as in Group A streptococci, of antigens related in their biologic effects to tissue transplantation antigens.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (729.2 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. ARAUJO P., KRAUSE R. M. GROUP-SPECIFIC CARBOHYDRATE OF GROUP C-VARIANT HEMOLYTIC STREPTOCOCCI. J Exp Med. 1963 Dec 1;118:1059–1067. doi: 10.1084/jem.118.6.1059. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BAUER J. A., Jr Histocompatibility in inbred strains of guinea pigs. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1958 Oct 7;73(3):663–672. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1959.tb40842.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Chase R. M., Jr, Rapaport F. T. The bacterial induction of homograft sensitivity. I. Effects of sensitization with group A streptococci. J Exp Med. 1965 Oct 1;122(4):721–732. doi: 10.1084/jem.122.4.721. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. DRACH G., WAHL R. ALLERGIE CUTAN'EE DU LAPIN 'A DES STREPTOCOQUES N'APPARTENANT PAS AU GROUPE A. R'EACTIONS CROIS'EES DANS L'ALLERGIE STREPTOCOCCIQUE. Ann Inst Pasteur (Paris) 1964 Apr;106:602–616. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. FREIMER E. H. Studies on L forms and protoplasts of group A streptococci. II. Chemical and immunological properties of the cell membrane. J Exp Med. 1963 Mar 1;117:377–399. doi: 10.1084/jem.117.3.377. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Hecht R., Sulzberger M. B., Weil H. STUDIES IN SENSITIZATION TO SKIN : I. THE PRODUCTION OF ANTIBODIES TO SKIN BY MEANS OF THE SYNERGISTIC ACTION OF HOMOLOGOUS SKIN ANTIGEN AND STAPHYLOCOCCUS TOXIN. J Exp Med. 1943 Jul 1;78(1):59–65. doi: 10.1084/jem.78.1.59. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. KAPLAN M. H. IMMUNOLOGIC RELATION OF STREPTOCOCCAL AND TISSUE ANTIGENS. I. PROPERTIES OF AN ANTIGEN IN CERTAIN STRAINS OF GROUP A STREPTOCOCCI EXHIBITING AN IMMUNOLOGIC CROSS-REACTION WITH HUMAN HEART TISSUE. J Immunol. 1963 Apr;90:595–606. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. KAPLAN M. H., MEYESERIAN M. An immunological cross-reaction between group-A streptococcal cells and human heart tissue. Lancet. 1962 Apr 7;1(7232):706–710. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(62)91653-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. KAPLAN M. H., MEYESERIAN M. Immunologic studies of heart tissue. V. Antigens related to heart tissue revealed by cross-reaction of rabbit antisera to heterologous heart. J Immunol. 1962 Apr;88:450–461. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. KAPLAN M. H., SUCHY M. L. IMMUNOLOGIC RELATION OF STREPTOCOCCAL AND TISSUE ANTIGENS. II. CROSS-REACTION OF ANTISERA TO MAMMALIAN HEART TISSUE WITH A CELL WALL CONSTITUENT OF CERTAIN STRAINS OF GROUP A STREPTOCOCCI. J Exp Med. 1964 Apr 1;119:643–650. doi: 10.1084/jem.119.4.643. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. KAPLAN M. H., SVEC K. H. IMMUNOLOGIC RELATION OF STREPTOCOCCAL AND TISSUE ANTIGENS. III. PRESENCE IN HUMAN SERA OF STREPTOCOCCAL ANTIBODY CROSS-REACTIVE WITH HEART TISSUE. ASSOCIATION WITH STREPTOCOCCAL INFECTION, RHEUMATIC FEVER, AND GLOMERULONEPHRITIS. J Exp Med. 1964 Apr 1;119:651–666. doi: 10.1084/jem.119.4.651. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. KRAUSE R. M., MCCARTY M. Studies on the chemical structure of the streptococcal cell wall. I. The identification of a mucopeptide in the cell walls of groups A and A-variant streptococci. J Exp Med. 1961 Jul 1;114:127–140. doi: 10.1084/jem.114.1.127. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. KRAUSE R. M., McCARTY M. Variation in the group-specific carbohydrate of group C hemolytic Streptococci. J Exp Med. 1962 Aug 1;116:131–140. doi: 10.1084/jem.116.2.131. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. MILLER J., MARTINEZ C., GOOD R. A. SUPPRESSION OF HOMOTRANSPLANTATION IMMUNITY OF INBRED MICE WITH COMPETING ANTIGENS. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1964 Nov 30;120:270–279. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1964.tb34725.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. McCARTY M. The occurrence of polyglycerophosphate as an antigenic component of various gram-positive bacterial species. J Exp Med. 1959 Apr 1;109(4):361–378. doi: 10.1084/jem.109.4.361. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Moen J. K. A SKIN TEST FOR DETECTING GROUP C HEMOLYTIC STREPTOCOCCAL INFECTION CAUSING EPIZOOTIC LYMPHADENITIS IN GUINEA PIGS : APPLICATIONS IN SELECTING BREEDING STOCK. J Exp Med. 1936 Sep 30;64(4):553–558. doi: 10.1084/jem.64.4.553. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. OLD L. J., CLARKE D. A., BENACERRAF B. Effect of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin infection on transplanted tumours in the mouse. Nature. 1959 Jul 25;184(Suppl 5):291–292. doi: 10.1038/184291a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. RAPAPORT F. T., CHASE R. M., Jr HOMOGRAFT SENSITIVITY INDUCTION BY GROUP A STREPTOCOCCI. Science. 1964 Jul 24;145(3630):407–408. doi: 10.1126/science.145.3630.407. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. ROWLEY D., JENKIN C. R. Antigenic cross-reaction between host and parasite as a possible cause of pathogenicity. Nature. 1962 Jan 13;193:151–154. doi: 10.1038/193151a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. ROWLEY D. Stimulation of natural immunity to Escherichia coli infection: observations on mice. Lancet. 1955 Jan 29;268(6857):232–234. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(55)90163-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Seastone C. V. HEMOLYTIC STREPTOCOCCUS LYMPHADENITIS IN GUINEA PIGS. J Exp Med. 1939 Sep 30;70(4):347–359. doi: 10.1084/jem.70.4.347. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. VITALE B., ALLEGRETTI N. INFLUENCE OF BACILLUS CALMETTE-GU'ERIN INFECTION ON THE INTENSITY OF HOMOGRAFT REACTION IN RATS. Nature. 1963 Aug 3;199:507–508. doi: 10.1038/199507a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. WANNAMAKER L. W. Electrophoretic studies of the extracellular products of group A Streptococci. J Exp Med. 1958 Jun 1;107(6):783–795. doi: 10.1084/jem.107.6.783. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Experimental Medicine are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES