Experimental Hypersensitivity in the Rabbit

Abstract

Recently, the histologic and serologic responses in the rabbit to single, large intravenous injections of purified bovine serum proteins have been described (1). These responses were: (1) To bovine serum gamma globulin--The development in most animals of a transient intracapillary glomerulonephritis, together with focal lesions of the liver, heart, and joints, the acute phase occurring from 1 to 2 weeks following injection; (2) to crystallized bovine serum albumin--The development in only about half of the rabbits of an intimal and subintimal arteritis of the large pulmonary and systemic arteries, the acute lesions being seen 2 to 3 weeks after injection. When the antigen was gamma globulin, it regularly disappeared from the circulation within 8 to 14 days following injection, and homologous antibody appeared shortly thereafter. In contrast, the albumin disappeared from the circulation after 14 to 21 days and then only in some of the rabbits. In others, it was still detectable after 4 weeks.From this correlation between the times of disappearance of the antigens, of the emergence of their antibodies, and of the development of lesions, it was deduced that the latter were dependent upon a reaction between antigen and antibody. Furthermore, it was postulated that the difference in distribution of the lesions depended upon a difference in localization of the two proteins used as antigens, since their molecules differ in physical and chemical as well * This is one of a series of clinical, pathological, and immunological studies on the proteins of blood and tissues, using proteins prepared by methods developed in the Department of Physical

C4a: An Anaphylatoxin in Name Only

“…The anaphylactic activity of complement was initially postulated over 100 years ago [72], and subsequent studies in passive cutaneous anaphylaxis directly demonstrated a role for complement but did not implicate the complement anaphylatoxins as we know them today [73,74,75]. In the late sixties, multiple groups independently documented the isolation and functional activity of C3a and C5a using purified complement proteins [76,77,78].…”

The Complement Profile in Acute Glomerulonephritis Systemic Lupus erythematosus and Hypocomplementemic Chronic Glomerulonephritis

“…It was known that when immune complexes are circulating during the phase of immune elimination of infused heterologous scrum proteins total C' activity is decreased [6,33,39]. It was found that when the total C' titer decreased, titers of each of the classical hemolytic C' components also decreased, and heat-stable anti-C' activity appeared in the serum ( fig.…”

“…These experiments were based on the known anti-C' or C'-fixing activities of immune complexes, aggregated human y-globulin (AHGG), zymosan and endotoxic lipopolysaccharides (LPS) in vivo and in vitro [3,4,6,20,32,33,39]. These agents also affected the C' profile in two distinct patterns [2, 12, 16 a, 32].…”

Continuing C3 breakdown after bilateral nephrectomy in patients with membrano-proliferative glomerulonephritis

“…In several types of experimental nephritis in animals, the presence of such complexes in the glomeruli and their role in the production of glomerular inflammation has been well documented (9)(10)(11)(12)(13). In humans, hypocomplementemic nephritides in which glomerular immune complexes are demonstrable are those accompanying serum sickness, prolonged sepsis, and systemic lupus erythematosus, as well as the nephritis which follows a streptococcal infection (4, 1-16).…”