Effect of immunization with highly purified alpha and beta toxins on staphylococcal mastitis in rabbits

Abstract

Experiments were carried out to determine whether immunization of female rabbits with highly purified staphylococcal alpha- or beta-toxins would protect them against intramammary challenge with staphylococci. High circulating anti-alpha-toxin titers reduced the lethal hemorrhagic edematous form of the disease ('blue-breast') produced by strains BB and Compton 201 to a localized chronic abscess form. No such protection was afforded by high anti-beta-toxin titers. Immunization with alpha- or beta-toxins produced no change in the clinical picture of the disease produced by CN.6708, a strain of Staphylococcus responsible for a natural outbreak of abscess-type rabbit mastitis. From these experiments it would appear that alpha-toxin is a key antigen in the blue-breast form of rabbit mastitis. Since the abscess form of the disease was not prevented by immunization with either alpha- or beta-toxin, other virulence factors must be acting to produce this more localized disease.