Abstract
A Limulus-positive substance has been known to exist in cellulose membrane dialysers, and it has been found to be a β-glucan-like substance and not an endotoxin. A new method, consisting of the C system specific to endotoxins and the G system activated by -glucan, was applied in hemodialysis patients using cellulose membrane dialysers and healthy volunteers by injecting them with the washed solution of cellulose membrane dialysers. As a result, a higher concentration of a β-glucan-like substance was found in the patients using cellulose membrane dialysers. Moreover, the decrease in its serum level was lower. Platelet coagulation and complement activation were unaffected.
