Joseph Lospalluto

Agglutination and inhibition by serum globulin in the sensitized sheep cell agglutination reaction in rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract 1.1. When the euglobulin fraction of serum was employed in the sensitized sheep cell agglutination reaction, over 90 per cent of 133 tests in 108 patients with rheumatoid arthritis gave positive results. Two to 7 per cent of 162 tests in 150 control subjects gave positive reactions. 2.2. Inhibition of agglutination by a variety of serums is demonstrated, and a procedure is described for measurement of inhibition of positive rheumatoid serum by the euglobulin fraction. The serum euglobulin of 105 patients with rheumatoid arthritis failed to show inhibition in 100 per cent of the cases whereas over 96 per cent of the euglobulin fractions of control subjects caused inhibition. 3.3. A positive agglutination test in the serum of a patient with rheumatoid arthritis became temporarily negative soon after intramuscular administration of pooled human gamma globulin. 4.4. The sensitized sheep cell agglutinating factor was demonstrated in the euglobulin fraction in five of seven patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. In no case of adult rheumatoid spondylitis or arthritis with psoriasis tested was agglutination observed.

Chemical and physical properties of cholera exo-enterotoxin (choleragen) and its spontaneously formed toxoid (choleragenoid)

Abstract The chemical properties of two proteins, cholera enterotoxin (choleragen) and a spontaneously formed toxoid (choleragenoid), have been studied. The toxin has a molecular weight of 84 000 and most likely consists of six subunits with molecular weights of approx. 15 000. The toxin molecule appears to consist of more than one type of subunit. Choleragenoid consists of a mixture of at least three proteins with molecular weights of 58 000 and 4 subunits of approximately equal size. Neither protein contains significant quantities of lipid or hexose.

EFFECT OF LEUKOCYTE AND SYNOVIAL MEMBRANE EXTRACTS ON CARTILAGE MUCOPROTEIN

The relatively simple composition of hyaline cartilage (1, 2) offers a unique opportunity to investigate the mechanism of erosion of this tissue in the presence of inflammatory synovitis. Shatton, Schubert and Malawista (1, 2) have shown that about half of the dry weight of bovine nasal cartilage consists of chondromucoprotein material. A protein preparation of similar composition has been isolated from human rib cartilage (3). The other half of dried cartilage consists mainly of collagen (2). In the absence of evidence of an enzyme that can attack native collagen at physiological pH, it appeared logical to investigate the possibility that the primary process occurring during the erosion of cartilage was the degradation of the chondromucoprotein. Accordingly, the effect of extracts of leukocytes and inflamed synovial membrane on the chondromucoprotein was studied. Chondromucoprotein as extracted by Shatton and Schubert (1) contains about 70 per cent chondroitin sulfate and 30 per cent protein. It is water-soluble and highly viscous in solution. The latter property is in contrast to that of free chondroitin sulfate, which forms solutions of relatively low viscosity. On the basis of this difference, the rate of breakdown of the mucoprotein under the influence of cell-free extracts of leukocytes from the peripheral blood and of synovial membranes from patients with a variety of arthritides has been measured. Rapid decrease in viscosity on treatment with extracts of normal leukocytes and rheumatoid synovial membranes has been observed. This has been paralleled by chemical evidence of degradation of the chondromucoprotein. It is suggested on the basis of the data obtained that the

Rheumatoid hyperviscosity syndrome

Two patients with rheumatoid arthritis and a serum hyperviscosity syndrome are described. Both patients had nodular rheumatoid arthritis, weakness and dyspnea, bleeding diathesis, a striking purplish red palmar erythema and high serum viscosity. Their serum had high titers of rheumatoid factor and large amounts of intermediate IgG complexes. Viscosity measurements of the isolated protein fractions suggested that the high serum viscosity was due to the interaction of rheumatoid factor with the intermediate IgG complexes, resulting in the formation of large molecular conglomerates. Viscosity measurements following recombination of the isolated protein fractions, the effects of sulfhydryl reagents on the viscosities measured and the determination of intrinsic viscosities confirmed this hypothesis.

Crystalline cholera toxin and toxoid.

The exo-enterotoxin of Vibrio cholerae has been obtained in crystalline form. A solution of the crystalline protein was equal in potency to the parent pure toxin in both choleragenicity and skin reactivity. Crystals of the natural toxoid, choleragenoid, resemble those of the toxin in appearance. A solution of crystalline choleragenoid was equivalent to the parent preparation in the flocculation test.