Resistance and susceptibility of mice to bacterial infection: course of listeriosis in resistant or susceptible mice

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Abstract
Resistance and susceptibility to Listeria monocytogenes in mice was related to the innate ability of the non-immune macrophages to kill or inhibit the growth of the organism during the 1st 24-48 h after infection and the time of onset of acquired cell-mediated resistance. Resistant C57Bl/6 mice were 10 times more efficient than susceptible BALB/c mice at suppressing the early growth of Listeria in the liver. The onset of acquired immunity occurred 24-48 h earlier in C57Bl/6 than in BALB/c mice. Acquired immunity was measured by fall in bacterial numbers in spleen and livers of infected mice, adoptive transfer of immunity to normal mice by using spleen cells from infected mice, delayed-type hypersensitivity skin testing and uptake of tritiated thymidine by lymphocytes in the spleen.