title: Correlations between endotoxin, interferon-gamma, biopterin and serum phospholipase A2-activities during lethal gram negative sepsis in rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To establish a standardised reproducible animal model of intraperitoneal sepsis, and to investigate early immunoserological responses to find a mediator-based system for evaluation and grading of diffuse peritonitis in patients
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective experimental study
  
  
  METHODS
  4 Teaching hospitals, Germany and Austria
  
  
  METHODS
  42 LEW. 1W rats, 12 of which acted as controls
  
  
  METHODS
  Gram negative sepsis was induced by intraperitoneal injection of 6 ml of a mixture of Escherichia coli (K1:H+) 10(10) organisms/ml, autogenous haemoglobin 2.9 ml (haemoglobin concentration 3%), 0.9% sodium chloride 3 ml, and suspension 0.1 ml. Control rats were given physiological saline 6 ml alone.
  
  
  METHODS
  Concentrations of endotoxin, interferon gamma (IFN-gamma), and biopterin, and serum phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were significant differences between the septic and control rats in concentrations of endotoxin (EU/ml) (median (interquartile range) 21.85 (2.02-159.5) compared with 0, p < 0.0001; IFN-gamma (pg/ml) 1263.0 (271.0-7575.0) compared with 101.0 (89.0-141.0), p < 0.0001; biopterin (nmol/L) 111.0 (66.4-156.3) compared with 53.7 (38.3-67.6), p < 0.001; and PLA2 (U/L) 163.0 (125.8-209.0) compared with 112.5 (88.5-126.5) p < 0.01.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Measurements of concentrations of endotoxin, IFN-gamma, pteridines, and PLA2 activity may well be adequate markers for early recognition of sepsis, and perhaps for grading it during the first 6 hours after induction. The allow a clear distinction to be made between septic and non-septic disorders in 87% of cases.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Surgery, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-University, Greifswald, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hunsicker
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kullich
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Weissenhofer
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lorenz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Petermann
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rokos
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schwesinger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001708:Biopterins / Q000097:blood; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000097:blood; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000097:blood*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood; D010532:Peritoneal Diseases / Q000097:blood*; D010741:Phospholipases A / Q000097:blood; D054467:Phospholipases A2; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D018805:Sepsis / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D004731:Endotoxins; D001708:Biopterins; D007371:Interferon-gamma; D010741:Phospholipases A; D054467:Phospholipases A2