Effects of Cortisone and Antibiotics on Lethal Action of Endotoxins in Mice.

Abstract

Administration of cortisone prior to or simultaneously with a lethal dose of endotoxin consistently protected the majority of mice from death. There was no protection when cortisone was administered after endotoxin. A transient bacteremia, presumably of intestinal origin, occurred in some animals a few hours after injection of endotoxin, but probably did not contribute significantly to death of the animals. Antibiotics were capable of suppressing bacteremia, but with the exception of streptomycin, which irregularly gave some protection, did not influence mortality rate. Injection of streptomycin or penicillin into animals previously treated with cortisone resulted in significantly higher mortality rates than in animals given cortisone alone. This interference by antibiotics with cortisone protection was demonstrable only when antibiotics were given after cortisone; simultaneous administration of both cortisone and antibiotic gave results which reflected only protective effects of cortisone.