Association between chemiluminescence stimulating and IL-2 inducing activities of Staphylococcus aureus strains in human and mouse mononuclear cells.

The plastic adherent fraction of human mononuclear cells (MNC) responded with maximal chemiluminescence (CL) upon stimulation with greater than or equal to 1000 bacteria per cell of heat killed preparations of Staphylococcus aureus strains. Different strains had different CL stimulating activities and their sequences were similar on MNC from different blood donors. IL-2 inducing and CL stimulating activities seem to be parallel features of S. aureus strains, since their sequence set ups established on the basis of these two properties were almost identical. The same phenomenon could also be observed in a mouse system, in which activated peritoneal cells (PC) were the most active CL exhibiting population. The IL-2 inducing activity of staphylococci in mouse spleen cells and their CL stimulating activity in activated PC followed a similar pattern too. The sequences of CL inducing activities of different staphylococcal strains were in good agreement in human and mouse cells. Representative strains with high, moderate and low CL inducing activities followed the same sequence of virulence for mice.