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Capsular Serotyping of Streptococcus pneumoniae by Latex Agglutination

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Published on: September 25, 2014

THE COMPLEMENT FIXATION REACTION WITH PNEUMOCOCCUS CAPSULAR POLYSACCHARIDE.

K Goodner¹, F L Horsfall

¹Hospital of The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research.

The Journal of Experimental Medicine

|October 30, 2009

Summary

Complement fixation with pneumococcus polysaccharide immune aggregates differs between horse and rabbit serum. Rabbit serum enables complement fixation, indicating an adsorptive phenomenon crucial for understanding immune responses to bacterial polysaccharides.

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Area of Science:

Immunology
Microbiology
Biochemistry

Background:

Complement fixation is a key immunological assay.
Understanding complement fixation with bacterial polysaccharides is crucial for diagnostics and therapeutics.
Previous studies have yielded inconsistent results regarding complement fixation with bacterial antigens.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the factors influencing complement fixation by immune aggregates of pneumococcus capsular polysaccharide.
To elucidate the mechanism of complement fixation in the context of bacterial polysaccharide-antibody interactions.
To compare the efficacy of different animal sera in complement fixation assays.

Main Methods:

Formation of immune aggregates using pneumococcus capsular polysaccharide and specific antibodies from horse and rabbit sera.
Assaying for complement fixation under varying experimental conditions.
Analyzing the adsorptive properties of immune aggregates.

Main Results:

Complement was not fixed by immune aggregates formed with horse serum, despite positive results with rabbit serum.
Negative results with horse serum were attributed to antibody properties, not inhibitors.
Complement fixation with rabbit serum-polysaccharide aggregates was identified as an adsorptive phenomenon dependent on aggregate surface exposure.

Conclusions:

The source of specific antibodies (e.g., horse vs. rabbit serum) significantly impacts complement fixation with pneumococcus polysaccharide.
Complement fixation is a tertiary phenomenon in this context, requiring antigen-antibody union and particulation.
The findings highlight the adsorptive nature of complement fixation and its implications for bacterial polysaccharide immunology.