1) A subcutaneous injection of hamster erythrocytes (HRBC) in Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA) or an intravenous injection of hamster lymph node (HLN) cells suppressed antibody production against HRBC in the low-responder C57BL/6 and AKR mice, when HRBC in saline were given on the same day; 2) The suppressing effect of such treatments was neither detectable in the high-responder SL mice, nor in the C57BL/6 mice, which had been pre-sensitized with HRBC in FCA or hamster lymphoma cells; 3) Positive reactions of the peritoneal macrophage disappearance test and the enhanced antibody production were detected seven days after treatment with HRBC in FCA and HRBC in saline, or HLN cells and HRBC in saline; 4) The suppressing effect of such simultaneous treatments on anti-HRBC antibody production was eliminated by a transfer of normal syngencic thymus cells to AKR mice or a transfer of thymus cells from SL to C57BL/6 mice. Suppression of the antibody production in the low-responder mice by the described simultaneous treatments may be due to a competitive involvement of HRBC-specific thymus-derived cells (T cells) in the developmental stages of delayed hypersensitivity and antibody production. High-responder SL mice appear to have enough T cells for development of the delayed hypersensitivity and as helper cells in antibody production. These results appear to support the concept that T cells for delayed hypersensitivity and antibody production to HRBC antigen are derived from the same original pool.

View full abstract

Comparative studies were carried out on the mode of action of the defective temperate phage 208 against the homologous lysogenic strain S-208 and a nonlysogenic strain S-161 of Lactobacillus salivarius. Treatment of both strains with phage 208 led to a specific inhibition of protein synthesis, cell killing without any reversion of protein synthesis, and of viable counts by treatment with trypsin. Killing action of phage 208 followed a single hit kinetics for nonlysogenie S-161 and S-208 No. 006, which is a cured strain of S-208, whereas, two to five hit kinetics was obtained for lysogenic S-208. Phage particles exposed to ultraviolet light (5.7kergs/cm²) also killed S-161 with a single hit kinetics and S-208 with a 3-hit kinetics. However, the kinetics of killing approached a single hit when the protein synthesis of S-208 was inhibited by chloramphenicol prior to the phage addition. Based upon these results, the possible mechanisms of immunity breakdown and of subsequent cell killing were discussed.

View full abstract

The germ-free chickens were mono-or dicontaminated with various species of facultative anaerobes and obligate anaerobes isolated from chickens, humans, pigs, and fermentation products, and their sera were studied for agglutinins against these organisms. After contamination, gnotobiotic chickens developed relatively high titers of agglutinins against Streptococcus, faeralis var. liquefaciens from a chicken and obligate anaerobes such as Bifidobacterium thermophilum (strain T 111), Bacteroides sp. (Au 21-27), and Fusobacterium (Sphaerophonrs) sp. (EBF 59/96p) from chickens, Bacteroides sp. (A 269-5) from a human, and B. thermophilum (P 2-91) and Fusobacterium (Sphaerophorus) sp. (PNC 2-23) from pigs. On the contrary, little or no detectable agglutinins were observed against Bacteroides sp. (Ch 220-17) from a chicken, Bifidobacterium adolescentis and Bifidobacterium bifidum from humans and Lactobacillus easel and Lactobacillus plantarum from fermentation products. Anti-Escherichia coli agglutinins were sensitive to 2-mercaptoethanol, but anti-B. thermophilum agglutinins were not.

View full abstract

A taxonomic study was carried out on 20 strains received as "Mycobacteriu" rhodochrous. These strains were exceedingly similar to the strains of the genus Gordona recently proposed by the present author. Out of the 20 strains studied, 10 strains, including two strains previously named Rhodococcus rhodochrous, formed one cluster and were considered to belong to a species of the genus Gordona. The species has been named Gordona rhodochroa (Zopf; Overbeck; Gordon et Mihm) Tsukamura comb. nov. Two strains were considered to belong to the species Gordona rubra. One of the two had initially been named Mycobacterium rubropertinctum. It was considered from the facts that the specific epithet for the species should be "rubropertinta" and the name Gordona nubra be changed to Gordona rubropertincta. The other strains seemed to belong to some other species. In conclusion, the species "Mycobacterium" rhodochrous appears to be divided into several species of the genus Gordona.

View full abstract

Japanese quail embryo (QE) cells were compared to chicken embryo (CE) cells with regard to the production of some group A arboviruses. The virus yield in QE cells was about the same as that in CE cells. The sensitivity of plaque assay of the viruses in QE cells was nearly equal to that in CE cells, although a certain range of fluctuation among individual culture bottles of QE cells was observed. QE cultures were found to possess some advantages for production and titration of group A arboviruses when compared CE cell system.

View full abstract

Group antigens of Lactobacillus casei were analyzed by immunodiffusion in agar. Antigens were extracted with cold trichloroacetic acid (TCA) from whole cells or cell-wall preparations. Using cell wall extracts as antigens, group B strains were clearly distinguished from group C strains. The antigen specific for group B was designated as antigen 1, and for group C as antigen 2. Group B cells contained either antigen 4 or antigen 5, in addition to antigen 1, in their cell walls, and were divided into two subgroups. TCA extracts of the whole-cell preparations contained an antigen common to groups B and C. This antigen was called antigen 3. Antigen 3 was not found in the cell-wall extracts. All species of lactobacilli and some species of other genera were found to contain this antigen in their whole-cell extracts. Inhibition tests with various sugars showed that L-rhamnose was the most effective inhibitor for antigens 1 and 5, α-glucoside for antigen 4, β-glucoside for antigen 2, and hexosamines for antigen 3.

View full abstract

One of virus strains, isolated from Japanese cattle and serologically identified as bovine respiratory syncytial (RS) virus, was examined. The virus was shown to be an RNA virus with a buoyant density of 1.225, filtrable through a Sartorius membrane filter of 200 nm pore size but not through a 100 or 50 nm filter, sensitive to ether, chloroform and deoxycholate, readily inactivated by trypsin, labile at 56 C and 37 C but stable at -80 C, rapidly inactivated at pH 3.0, and resistant to freeze-thawing. These properties are compatible with those previously reported for RS virus of human and bovine origin.

View full abstract