Effect immunization with highly purified alpha- and beta-toxins on staphylococcal mastitis in rabbits

Experiments were carried out to determine whether immunization of female rabbits with highly purified staphylococcal alpha- or beta-toxins would protect them against intramammary challenge with staphylococci. High circulating anti-alpha-toxin titers reduced the lethal hemorrhagic edematous form of the disease ("blue-breast") produced by strains BB and Compton 201 to a localized chronic abscess form. No such protection was afforded by high anti-beta-toxin titers. Immunization with alpha- or beta-toxins produced no change in the clinical picture of the disease produced by CN.6708, a strain of Staphylococcus responsible for a natural outbreak of abscess-type rabbit mastitis. From these experiments it would appear that alpha-toxin is a key antigen in the blue-breast form of rabbit mastitis. Since the abscess form of the disease was not prevented by immunization with either alpha- or beta-toxin, other virulence factors must be acting to produce this more localized disease.