Endotoxin-inactivating activity in normal and pathological human blood samples

T Obayashi, H Tamura, S Tanaka, M Ohki, S Takahashi, T Kawai
1986 Infection and Immunity  
The endotoxin-specific chromogenic test revealed that plasma endotoxin-inactivating activity was markedly diminished by endotoxemia, but not by fungemia or by dialysis with cellulose membranes, suggesting that fungal polysaccharides and other nonendotoxic, Limulus-reactive materials do not consume endotoxininactivating factors in the blood. There was a close negative correlation between plasma endotoxin concentration and endotoxin-inactivating activity. The specificity of the test was improved
more » ... y fractionating amebocyte lysate and using only the factors that constitute the endotoxin-sensitive coagulation pathway of the horseshoe crab. This test was able to differentiate endotoxemia from fungemia and from contamination with other nonendotoxic, Limulus-reactive materials.
doi:10.1128/iai.53.2.294-297.1986 fatcat:d7ljsy47fnbl5jdhshhna3vpyu