The antibody response to bacterial gastroenteritis in serum and secretions.

The antibody responses to bacterial gastroenteritis in jejunal aspirates and sera from sixteen adults and nine children were examined using a radioimmunoassay. Twelve adults served as controls. A clear antibody response was apparent in both intestinal aspirates and sera. While the absolute concentrations of antibody were much higher in sera, the proportion of immunoglobulin committed to specific antibodies was similar in both the intestinal fluids and sera. The antibody responses in the intestine and in the serum were very similar in the group as a whole, but they varied widely in individual subjects. Over a period of 1 month intestinal antibody levels in adults remained constant but in children they showed a decrease. In two subjects high levels of intestinal antibody were still apparent after 1 year. The organism responsible for the infection was still present in the gut of five subjects 1 month after clinical recovery from infection in the presence of local antibody. The relevance of these results and their implications for further study of the immune response to bacterial gastroenteritis are discussed.