Immune responses to lipoteichoic acid: comparison of antibody responses in rabbits and mice. Part II.

Humoral immune responses to lipoteichoic acid (LTA) as a surface antigen of Lactobacillus fermentum were assessed in rabbits and mice. Intravenous injection of rabbits with whole bacteria was effective, over a wide range of doses (10(4) to 10(10) cells), in eliciting antibodies to LTA. In mice, significant levels of anti-LTA antibodies were induced only following intraperitoneal injection of 10(8) to 10(9) L. fermentum cells. Rabbit antibodies to LTA were predominantly of the IgM class and were specific for the polyglycerol phosphate and carbohydrate moieties of the LTA. In contrast, both IgM and IgG anti-LTA antibodies were produced in the mouse, and antibody specificity was restricted to the polyglycerol phosphate sequence.