HYPERREACTIVITY TO ENDOTOXIN IN MICE INFECTED WITH MYCOBACTERIA - INDUCTION AND ELICITATION OF REACTIONS

Abstract

In the mouse, the parenteral injection of whole mycobacteria, cord factor or mycobacterial cell walls induces a 100 to 500,000 fold decrease in the acute i/v LD50 of endotoxic lipopoly-saccharide (LPS) of Gram-negative organisms. Non-specific hyper-reactivity of this kind is more easily induced by infection with living mycobacteria than by injection of dead organisms, and more easily when these are injected intravenously than intraperitoneally; but BCG and other strains of low virulence are as effective as fully virulent strains such as H37RV or Vallee. The hyperreactivity reaches a maximum at 7-9 days and persists for at least 3 weeks. All of four strains of mice tested behaved similarly.