title: Passive protection by antitoxin in experimental Pseudomonas aeruginosa burn infections.
abstract: The protective effect of intravenously administered rabbit antitoxin serum was studied in lethal Pseudomonas aeruginosa burn infections in mice. Survival after infection with 2 median lethal doses of a toxigenic, low-protease-producing strain (PA103) was enhanced in antitoxin-treated mice, as compared with controls that had received anti-bovine serum albumin serum (P = 0.0004). Survival time was prolonged in other antitoxin-treated mice infected with toxigenic, high-protease-producing strains (PA86 and PA220, P = 0.0003 and P = 0.01, respectively). In contrast, antitoxin had no protective effect in mice challenged with a nontoxigenic strain (WR 5, P = 0.57). There were fewer viable bacteria in blood and liver of antitoxin-treated mice than in those of anti-bovine serum albumin-treated controls after infection with toxigenic organisms, whereas there were no significant differences between the two groups after challenge with the nontoxigenic strain. These data suggest that P. aeruginosa exotoxin A contributes to lethality in this burn infection model, and this effect is diminished by passive immunization with antitoxin.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000992:Antitoxins; D002056:Burns; D005098:Exotoxins; D005260:Female; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired; D008099:Liver / Q000382:microbiology; D051379:Mice; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000276:immunology*; D018805:Sepsis
chemical_list: D000992:Antitoxins; D005098:Exotoxins