Kenyon R H, Pedersen C E
Infect Immun. 1980 May;28(2):310-3. doi: 10.1128/iai.28.2.310-313.1980.
Athymic BALB/c nude mice and euthymic BALB/c mice were infected with Rickettsia akari by the intraperitoneal route. The rickettsialpox infection was terminated in euthymic mice with only two intraperitoneal injections of the antibiotic oxytetracycline, whereas prolonged treatment was necessary to terminate the infection in athymic mice. Both athymic and euthymic mice produced specific antibody, but athymic mice were still susceptible to reinfection. Killed R. akari served as a protective immunogen in euthymic, but no in athymic, mice. When spleen cells from convalescent euthymic mice were transferred to syngeneic athymic mice, recipients showed protection against challenge. This suggests that a T-cell-dependent step is generally necessary to terminate the rickettsialpox infection.
通过腹腔注射途径，将阿卡里立克次体感染无胸腺的BALB/c裸鼠和有胸腺的BALB/c小鼠。对于有胸腺的小鼠，仅腹腔注射两次抗生素土霉素即可终止立克次体痘感染，而对于无胸腺的小鼠，则需要延长治疗时间才能终止感染。无胸腺和有胸腺的小鼠均产生特异性抗体，但无胸腺的小鼠仍易再次感染。灭活的阿卡里立克次体在有胸腺的小鼠中可作为保护性免疫原，但在无胸腺的小鼠中则不然。当将恢复期有胸腺小鼠的脾细胞转移至同基因无胸腺小鼠时，受体显示出对攻击的抵抗力。这表明，一般来说，终止立克次体痘感染需要一个依赖T细胞的步骤。
