Perchloric acid treatment and use of chromogenic substrate in the Limulus test: application to veterinary diagnosis

The Limulus test was carried out for endotoxin determination using a synthetic chromogenic substrate after perchloric acid(PCA) treatment to remove inhibiting substances in the blood. PCA treatment completely removed non-specific amidolytic activity and other factors which interfered with the Limulus test. The recovery of added endotoxin was about 100% irrespective of animal species. Endotoxin levels in PCA-treated blood plasma of healthy domestic animals were invariably below 1 pg ml-1. Many of the cows with gangrenous mastitis, from which Gram-negative rods were isolated, showed high endotoxin levels ranging from 22.8 to 138.0 pg ml-1. Endotoxin was also detected in the blood of cows affected with salmonellosis, colibacillosis, Haemophilus somnus infection and urethritis associated with Proteus.