Failure of Pretreatment with Glucocorticoids to Modify the Phagocytic and Bactericidal Capacity of Human Leukocytes for Encapsulated Type I Pneumococcus

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Abstract
Allison, Fred, Jr. (University Medical Center, Jackson, Miss.),and Martha H. Adcock. Failure of pretreatment with glucocorticoids to modify the phagocytic and bactericidal capacity of human leukocytes for encapsulated type I pneumococcus. J. Bacteriol.89:1256–1261. 1965.—The influence of glucocorticoid administration for 4 days upon the bactericidal and phagocytic functions of leukocytes recovered from venous blood of healthy human beings was evaluated within an in vitro system that contained fully virulent, type I pneumococcus. Ingestion of pneumococcus by granulocytes spread upon a suitable surface, followed by thin slide cultures of the preparation, permitted precise quantitation of cellular phagocytic functions. It was found that granulocytes from healthy donors subjected to short-term glucocorticoid treatment ingested and killed pneumococcus as well as did cells obtained before therapy. Human leukocytes obtained after treatment with prednisolone functioned in a suspending medium of high ionic strength as well as did cells harvested before treatment, although the efficiency of both groups was significantly less than when manipulated in autologous serum.