INFLUENZA-VIRUSES AND STAPHYLOCOCCI INVITRO - SOME INTERACTIONS WITH POLYMORPHONUCLEAR LEUKOCYTES AND EPITHELIAL-CELLS

  • 1 January 1977
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 58  (3) , 281-288
Abstract
Bacterial infection contributes substantially to the morbidity and mortality of human influenza. In vitro experiments were performed to test 2 hypotheses regarding a possible relationship between the virus and bacterial infection. Maintenance media from tissue and organ cultures infected with influenza virus were tested for the presence of staphylococcal growth-promoting factors; no evidence for these was found. A virus effect on polymorphonuclear leucocyte function was looked for and human leukocytes purified from venous blood and exposed to influenza virus responded normally to stimulation of hexose monophosphate shunt activity and chemiluminescence, but their responses in tests of phagocytic function and of chemotaxis were inhibited. By various criteria this effect was specific to the virus and could be obtained even when only a few virus particles were present per leucocyte. This may be a mechanism by which influenza virus could enhance susceptibility to bacterial infection in the lung.