Abstract
It has been shown that inadequately immunized humans dying of rabies succumb after an incubation period shorter than that of any unvaccinated human rabies cases. This report is concerned with the reproduction and analysis of this phenomenon called “early death” in experimental animals. A significant reduction of the incubation period was recognized in hamsters (P< 0.01), and rabbits (P< 0.05) immunized with potent anti-rabies vaccine after being challenged by rabies virus, while the reduction was not significant among animals that were treated with anti-rabies virus serum. The viral antigen in the central nervous system examined at the onset of disease by immunofluorescent staining rather decreased and inclusion bodies were less plentiful among animals that died earlier than in the controls, whereas no marked deposition of complement or immunoglobulin in nerve cells was proved in this study. The phenomenon could be reproduced in experimental animals vaccinated after exposure, although it could not be shown clearly that “early death” in experimental animals is mediated through anti-rabies antibodies.
