Immunization of Human Subjects With the Specific Carbohydrates of Type Iii and the Related Type Viii Pneumococcus 1

Abstract

Sugg and Harris and their respective coworkers were the first to study extensively the immunologic properties of a strain of pneumococcus closely related to, but not identical with, typical strains of Type III pneumococci (1, 2). The " Thomas " strain of these workers now can be classified definitely as a Type VIII pneumococcus, according to the classification of Cooper et al. (3). Both the Thomas strain and the Type VIII strains were shown, by these respective investigators, to produce in certain animal species antibodies of high titer against typical strains of Type III pneumococci. The titers were sometimes higher than the notoriously low homologous antibody titers obtainable by the injection of typical Type III strains. The reciprocal serological relationships between typical Type III strains and the related Type VIII strains were demonstrated with regard to passive protection in mice, agglutination, and precipitation. Antibody relationships similar to those described in the sera of lower animals were shown, by Finland and Winkler (4), to occur also in the sera of certain human subjects during convalescence from pneumonia due to these types. With regard to " natural antibodies," as measured by the pneumococcidal power of the whole defibrinated blood or the protection afforded mice by the serum of normal human subjects, Finland and Sutliff found no such reciprocal relationship (5).The specific carbohydrate from Pneumococcus Type VIII was recently isolated and its properties described by Brown (6

The Influence of Dosage and Route of Injection on the Antibody Response of Human Subjects to the Specific Carbohydrate of the Type Viii Pneumococcus 1

“…The subjects chosen for this investigation, the Type VIII pneumococcus specific carbohydrate used, and the methods employed for the antibody studies have been described in the previous communication (1). Except in the subjects included in that report, phagocytic tests were performed irregularly.…”

Serum therapy revisited: animal models of infection and development of passive antibody therapy

“…The mouse i.p. model was also used to demonstrate the presence of antibodies in the convalescent-phase serum of patients with pneumococcal pneumonia (31,70) and to determine the efficacy of antipneumococcal vaccines in inducing protective antibodies (44). The advantages of the mouse model were that mice were very susceptible to pneumococci, mice were a readily available laboratory species, and more importantly, the model discriminated between protective and nonprotective sera.…”

Synthetic carbohydrate-based vaccines: challenges and opportunities

“…In 1930, Francis and Tillett injected pure pneumococcal polysaccharides to patients and found CPS-specific antibodies in those patients [3]. Later studies by Finland and Ruegsegger furthered the development of pneumococcal capsular polysaccharide vaccines [4]. From 1942 to 1945, Heidelberger and his associates developed tetravalent vaccine, and the test in the US army air force was successful [5].…”