Acute and Chronic Enterotoxin Enteritis

Abstract

PLATES 49 TO 52(Received for publication, May 22, 1964) Studies of human enteritis and colitis have been difficult because it has not been possible to reproduce the disease in a suitable experimental animal by biological means. It has been shown by well controlled experiments that enterocolitis can be induced in chinchillas by oral administration of pure cultures of Staphylococcus aureus when the colonic flora of these rodents is altered by antibiotics (11). Subsequent experiments have shown that enterocolitis develops in untreated chinchillas in response to oral feeding of staphylococcal enterotoxin free of the microorganism from which it was extracted (9). Moderate to severe jejunitis has been observed in cats and kittens after repeated, daily feedings of staphylococcal enterotoxin (11). Microbiologists have known for a long time that enterotoxin induces vomiting in the monkey and food poisoning in man. These several observations led us to postulate that enterotoxin may exert its toxic effect in many animal species and that the responses may be quantitative. The review of the literature did not make these assumptions and prospects of discovery very attractive. Be that as it may, an experimental model of enteritis was needed in a suitable laboratory animal such as the dog.The early attempts to induce enterocolitis in dogs by bacterial toxins were unsuccessful and led to the impression that the dog was remarkably resistant to this disease (6). Thus, Minett fed 20 to 40 ml of staphylococcal filtrate to five young dogs and was able to induce vomiting in one and diarrhea in another one; the other three animals showed no effect (7). Hagan and Bruner stated that with the exception of kittens and suckling pigs, domestic animals do not appear to be susceptible to staphylococcal enterotoxin (4). Elek, in reviewing the subject of species susceptibility to enterotoxin, indicated that the only good experimental animal was the monkey (3).If our postulate was to be correct, then the previous failures could have been due to inadequate quantities of enterotoxin retained by the experimental animal. In our own laboratory, the dogs could not be induced to drink crude toxin, and, when the material was given by gavage, they promptly regurgitated it. 120.4.561 Published Online: 1 October, 1964 | Supp Info: ACUTE AND CHROi~[C ENTEROTOXIN ENTERITISThese considerations led us to devise a preparation in dogs which would enable us to introduce large quantities of enterotoxin directly into the a l i m e n t a r y tract. T h e p r e p a r a t i o n finally a d a p t e d was a M a y d l e n t e r o s t o m y (Text- fig. 1) with the open end of the ileum forming an enterocutaneous feeding s t o m a (5). W i t h this preparation the animals could not regurgitate the substance. Thus, the q u a n t i t y given was controlled.TF.xT-Fm. 1. Maydl enterostomy. Material introduced into the enterocutaneous stoma is carried directly into the intestine. Materials and MethodsTwenty-seven healthy, mongrel dogs, ranging in weight from 10 to 17 kg, were...

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The botulinal, tetanal, and enterostaphylococcal toxins: A review

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Interaction of Staphylococcal Enterotoxin B with Cell Cultures of Human Embryonic Intestine

“…Staphylococcal enterotoxin is known to produce vomiting in monkeys and kittens and food poisoning in man. In addition, staphylococcal enterotoxin will produce enterocolitis in chinchillas (4) and enteritis in varying severity in cats and kittens (6) and in dogs (7).…”