Immunological Properties of a High Molecular Weight Component from Yeast Cell Autolysate in Dogs and Evaluation of Its Potential Role in Human Dextran Reactions

Abstract

A high molecular weight component (HMC) of autolysate from Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast cells was prepared. HMC was found to be immunogenic in dogs, inducing hemagglutinating antibody formation. Upon HMC challenge of immunized dogs, systemic anaphylactoid reactions were observed in 4/5 animals. The most prominent symptom was decreased cardiac output. Decrease in mean arterial pressure and increase in pulmonary arterial pressure were also observed. Consumption of total serum complement activity amounted to 22% of initial values. HMC also exhibited mitogenic activity in lymphocyte cultures from nonimmunized and immunized dogs. Since yeast autolysate is used as nitrogen source for Leuconostoc mesenteroides in the production of clinical B 512 dextran it is a theoretically possible trace contaminant of such solutions. Therefore, dogs hyperimmunized with HMC were also challenged with clinical dextran. No anaphylactoid signs were observed. These data suggest a negligible causal role of macromolecular contaminants derived from yeast cell autolysate in rare human anaphylactoid reactions following infusion of clinical dextran.

Pathomechanism of Dextran-Induced Anaphylactoid Reactions in Man

“…No evidence for a pathogenic role of contaminating macromolecules could be obtained using different experimental ap proaches [3,5,7], Instead, experimental data incriminate the dextran molecule as eliciting agent [2,3]. Using passive hemagglutination with stearoyldextran-coated human red cells, a positive correlation between titers of DRA (IgG, IgA, IgM) and increasing severity of DIAR was obtained in DR ( fig.…”

Clinical Dextrans Lack Mitogenic Activity for Normal Human Lymphocytes <i>in vitro</i>

“…Some dextran prod ucts contain trace amounts of materials de rived from yeast extract in the bacterial growth medium or from L. mesenteroides it self, which can be detected by immuno chemical methods [8]. This possibility has been fully explored in the present study, again with negative results.…”