Hypersensitivity to mineral oil in the domestic fowl

Domestic fowl were found to be hypersensitive to a second injection of highly purified mineral oil if they had been primed 3 weeks previously with oil in the presence of mycobacteria. This response did not appear to be related to impurities originally present in the oil or introduced into it during sterilization, and did not follow priming with mycobacteria in vegetable oil or in saline. The reaction at the challenge site was prolonged and developed a characteristic histology identical to that found at the priming site. It is postualted that the hypersensitivity seen has an immunological basis and that birds are able to respond to antigenic determinants formed by long chain aliphatic hydrocarbons.