Abstract
Summary
The pure alkane n-hexadecane not only is a useful substitute for crude mineral oils as a constituent of Freund water-in-oil adjuvant mixtures used to sensitize mice to protein antigen, but also it provides a stronger adjuvant effect. This superiority appears to be quantitative, for it becomes negligible when a two-injection immunization schedule is used with allowance of adequate time between injections for anamnestic responsiveness to develop. Our results suggest that immunization with water-in-oil emulsions can be improved if the mineral oils usually used in these emulsions are replaced by pure saturated hydrocarbons of appropriate carbon chain length, such as n-hexadecane. Replacing the commonly used emulsifier, mannide monooleate (Arlacel) with glycerol monooleate (Myverol) increased the ease of emulsincation but had no influence on the immunologic effectiveness of the emulsions studied.
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