EFFECTS OF ALLOGENEIC POLYMORPHONUCLEAR NEUTROPHILS ON STAPHYLOCOCCALSEPSIS IN MICE

The antibacterial and host-damaging properties of locally injected all ogeneic polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) were studied in vivo. Peri toneal PMN were obtained from donor mice 24 h after i.m. infection wit h sublethal (SD) and lethal (LD) dose of Staphylococcus aureus. These donor PMN were mixed with S. aureus and injected i.m. into normal reci pient mice. Normal donor PMN and PMN obtained from SL-infected donor m ice did not induce the mortality of SL-infected recipient mice but pro tected LD-infected recipients (5.8% mortality vs. 29.4%). PMN obtained from LD-infected donor mice caused ca. 77% mortality in SD-infected r ecipients. In survivors, during the first 3 h infection, serum tumor n ecrosis factor (TNF) concentrations were higher than those in nonsurvi vors and then decreased. In contrast, TNF level in nonsurvivors contin ued to be increased until death. PMN from LD-infected donors had the h ighest spontaneous chemiluminescence response (CL), the shortest time of peak and the lowest level of intracellular CL against S. aut eus. T hese donor PMN exhibited increased phagocytosis and decreased killing of S. aureus than that of PMN of SD-infected donor mice. Early stimula tion of PMN functions such as bacterial internalization and respirator y burst may result in decrease of their tissue-damaging properties.