Abstract
Summary
Lipopolysaccharide and its lip-oid A component, when injected together with the common antigen of Gram-positive bacteria obtained from S. aureus, inhibit the production of circulating antibodies detected by hemagglutination. Nonetheless, the animals so treated are immunologically primed, as evident from a more rapid development of antibodies following a booster injection of antigen than is observed in unprimed animals. The common antigen of Gram-negative bacteria neither primes the animals nor functions as a booster antigen for the production of antibodies against the staphylococcal antigen, indicating the specificity of priming. The specificity of the immune response to staphylococcal antigen was ascertained by the fact that the antibodies react with erythrocytes modified by B. subtills antigen as well, and that the latter antigen inhibits completely the hemagglutination of red blood cells modified by staphylococcal antigen. It is postulated that lipopolysaccharide (endotoxin) and its lipoid A component interact with certain antigens in vitro, and that the inhibitor, when injected into rabbits together with the antigen, interferes with the production of circulating antibodies without eliminating the establishment of immunologic memory.
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