Reduced Adjuvant Activity of <i>Bordetella pertussis </i>on the Secondary Immune Response of Mice Evoked by an Immunogenic Threshold Dose of Sheep Erythrocytes

Time Relationships Between Injection of Antigen and Adjuvant I. Adjuvancy of Bordetella pertussis Given at Various Times Before the Primary Antigenic Stimulus

“…No positive correlation was demonstrable between the degree of the primary immune response and the secondary response. This supports the concept that memory cell production may develop concurrently with, but independently of, the cellular proliferative events leading to antibody formation during the primary immune response (9,10,23).…”

Reduced Adjuvant Activity of <i>Bordetella pertussis</i> Vaccine in Mice after Priming with an Immunogenic Threshold Dose

“…Similar observations were made when mice were boostered with various amounts of antigen after preceding primary stimulation with an optimal antigenic dose [9]. It is believed, however, that the amount of the booster dose is of secondary importance with respect to the anamnestic response when the primary stimulation was sufficient [26].…”

“…Assuming that a positive correlation exists between the number of memory cells present at the time of the booster and the outcome of the secondary response, it is evident that: a) the majority of X-cells is transformed to Y-cells by an immuno genic threshold dose of sheep erythrocytes, which is only capable to induce a poor primary immune response; b) the number of memory cells is increased significantly by B. pertussis cells, when they are administered together with the primary antigenic stimulus; c) the bacterial adjuvant has not the capacity to cause multiplica tion of memory cells, which does not exclude the possibility that the adjuvant can increase the proliferative potential of Y-cells or their derivatives; d) specific stimulation of memory cells is a dose-dependent process. This indicates that an essential effect of B. pertussis cells as an adju vant is the induction of the multiplication of antigen-sensitive X-cells or early derivatives during differentiation [9].…”

“…Further more, B. pertussis causes an increased priming for the secondary response of mice to sheep erythrocytes [2,7,8]. The full adjuvant efficiency of pertussis organisms was, however, demonstrable only when the bacterial adjuvant was given together with the primary antigenic stimulus [9]. In these studies, an optimal dose of 4 x 108 sheep erythrocytes was used for the primary immunization [9].…”

“…The full adjuvant efficiency of pertussis organisms was, however, demonstrable only when the bacterial adjuvant was given together with the primary antigenic stimulus [9]. In these studies, an optimal dose of 4 x 108 sheep erythrocytes was used for the primary immunization [9]. There is evidence that the process of priming is affected by the primary immuni zation with sub-optimal amounts of a given antigen [10, 24 26].…”