title: Effect of viral and bacterial pneumonias on cell-mediated immunity in humans.
abstract: Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) was assessed during infection and after convalescence in 12 patients with influenza pneumonia and 10 patients with bacterial pneumonia. The patients with influenza pneumonia had a marked impairment of skin test reactivity, and their lymphocytes showed a diminished response to phytohemagglutinin and streptokinase-streptodornase stimulation in vitro. Suppression of CMI was related to the severity of the pneumonia. Patients with bacterial pneumonia showed as great a suppression of the response to phytohemagglutinin and streptokinase-streptodornase as the patients with viral pneumonia. All parameters of CMI returned to normal in both groups after convalescence. The depression of CMI could not be related to a decrease in the number of thymus-derived lymphocytes or to serum-suppressive factors in these patients.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D006801:Humans; D006968:Hypersensitivity, Delayed / Q000175:diagnosis; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D009980:Influenza A virus / Q000276:immunology*; D037102:Lectins / Q000494:pharmacology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D009975:Orthomyxoviridae / Q000276:immunology*; D011023:Pneumonia, Staphylococcal / Q000276:immunology*; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000276:immunology*; D012882:Skin Tests; D013299:Streptodornase and Streptokinase / Q000494:pharmacology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes
chemical_list: D037102:Lectins; D013299:Streptodornase and Streptokinase