Abstract
Following repeated injection of B. typhosus vaccine into an anterior chamber of the rabbit eye, Shamburow 1 found the specific B. typhosus agglutinin titer of the aqueous humor of that eye increased to as much as 8 times the synchronous agglutinin titer of the blood stream. The non-vaccinated eye often showed 2 to 3 times the synchronous serum titer. He believes his data prove: (1) a local synthesis of specific agglutinin in the vaccinated eye, and (2) a neurological reflex, causing a similar local antibody synthesis in the non-vaccinated eye.
In our attempts to confirm his data, 8 half-grown rabbits were repeatedly injected in one anterior chamber with heat-killed or living B. typhosus, doses and time intervals being the same as that used by the Russian investigator. Forty-eight parallel titrations of the resulting antiserums and immune aqueous humors are summarized in Table I, each recorded titer being the mathematical average of the readings from 8 rabbits.
In no individual rabbit of our series did the agglutinin titer of the aqueous humor of the vaccinated eye exceed one-half of the synchronous serum titer, nor did the titer in the non-vaccinated eye even exceed 1% of that of the blood stream. From these data we see no reason to assume either a local or a “reflex” synthesis of specific agglutinins in the occular tissues.
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