Abstract
In a case of coccidioidal granuloma studied no specific complement-fixing bodies or agglutinins could be found in the blood serum using cultures of Coccidioides immitis and emulsions of the same organism from human lesions as antigens. No specific skin reaction could be demonstrated. Precipitins, however, could be demonstrated in the serum even when diluted 1-160, when an extract of dried cultures of the organisms was used as precipitinogen. The precipitins were apparently specific since they could not be demonstrated when normal serum was tested with the same antigen or when the specific immune serum was tested with an antigen similarly prepared from the closely related organism Blastomyces.
The presence of specific precipitins in this infection must be verified by the examination of other cases. It is suggested that this reaction might be applied as a means of diagnosis in cases of deep seated infection where there are no discharging lesions from which the spherical doubly-contoured bodies can be demonstrated. It might also serve as a means of differentiating coccidioidal granuloma from blastomycosis in obscure cases.
Experiments are now being carried out to determine whether specific immune substances are formed in infected animals.
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