Passive transfer of resistance to frambesial infection in hamsters

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Abstract
The immune mechanism by which hamsters acquire resistance to infection with Treponema pertenue, the causative agent of frambesia, or yaws, was not elucidated. Serum or cells (spleen or lymph node) obtained from hamsters resistant to frambesial infection were transferred to normal syngenic recipients, who are subsequently infected with T. pertenue. The following parameters were used to measure the ability of immune serum or cells to confer resistance on recipient hamsters to frambesial infection: inhibition of the development of cutaneous lesions, decreased weight and number of treponemes in the inguinal lymph nodes. Immune serum conferred protection on recipient hamsters infected with T. pertenue. Discontinuation of the administration of immune serum (18 days after frambesial infection) did not result in the development of cutaneous lesions. Since the inguinal lymph nodes contained a sizeable number of treponemes (2.6 .times. 105), immune serum failed to prevent frambesial infection. Recipients of immune spleen or lymph node cells initially developed frambesial lesions 9 days after infection. The frambesial lesions began to resolve 12-14 days after infection and by day 21 had completely regressed. Humoral factors and cells are involved in resistance of the hamster to frambesial infection.