Paul B. Jennings

Experimental Escherichia coli sepsis in rabbits.

Blood culture studies in rabbits with experimental E. coli bacteremia revealed that broth cultures of 2.0 ml ofblood were positive whenever detectable bacteremia was present. When there were more than five organisms per milliliter, there was no difference between 0.2 and 2.0 ml of blood samples. Because the level of bacteremia in E. coli sepsis in newborn infants is commonly high, blood samples as small as 0.2 ml will consistently detect neonatal sepsis. Therefore, when 1 to 2 ml of peripheral blood is not readily available for culturing, a smaller sample should be utilized so that antibiotic therapy is not delayed.

Effects of glucose therapy on experimental Escherichia coli septicemia

Abstract Therapeutic and prophylactic employment of glucose infusion during E. coli septicemia apparently induces a reversal of the effect, manifested by the presence of the organism and its by-products. Dogs, receiving a continual infusion of E. coli at 1 × 107/ ml with elevated blood glucose levels, showed a 1000-fold decrease in circulating bacteria within 2 hr when compared with control animals. Dogs prophylactically treated cleared circulating E. coli in 30 to 60 min, sooner than control animals. Glucose infusion employed therapeutically and prophylactically has a curative effect in Gram-negative septicemias and bacteremias.

Prevalence of Circulating HL-A Lymphocytotoxic Antibodies in Men After Vasectomy*

Thirty-two men undergoing vasectomy were studied for one year to determine presence of HL-A antibodies after surgery. Blood samples were taken prior to vasectomy and at three, six, nine, and 12 months following surgery. Twenty-six men showed no increase in antibody activity during the study when their sera were matched against a 25-member typed lymphocyte donor panel. Sera of two men showed a definite increase in positive reactions, six to 12 months after surgery. The sera of four men showed slight increases in reactivity between three and 12 months after vasectomy. The serum of one man showed a single positive reaction against his own lymphocytes three months after surgery, but no positive reactivity against the lymphocyte donor panel. These studies suggest that HL-A antibodies are not regularly formed as a result of standard vasectomy procedures, but that further long-term evaluation of vasectomized patients may be needed to make definite conclusions.