RAT-BLOOD LEUKOCYTES, UNLIKE RABBIT LEUKOCYTES, DO NOT GENERATE PROCOAGULANT ACTIVITY ON EXPOSURE TO ENDOTOXIN

  • 1 January 1981
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 62  (6) , 638-642
Abstract
The ability of rat and rabbit leukocytes to generate procoagulant activity (PCA) in response to endotoxin (Escherichia coli, Sarratia marcescens) in vitro and in vivo was investigated. On prolonged incubation with endotoxin (10 .mu.g/ml) isolated rabbit leukocytes developed strong PCA as measured by clotting and amidolytic assay. Rat leukocytes failed to produce any PCA even in the presence of huge amounts of endotoxin (200 mg/ml). When rabbits were given 2 spaced endotoxin injections (25 .mu.g/kg body wt 24 h apart), blood leukocytes harvested 30-60 min after the 2nd injection consistently showed marked PCA. Again, unlike in the rabbit, rat leukocytes obtained after 2 endotoxin injections (up to 2 mg/kg body wt) showed absolutely no PCA. Thus, leukocytes are evidently involved in endotoxin-induced disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) in rabbits. The poor response of rat leukocytes to endotoxin might help explain the resistance of rats of DIC and Sanarelli-Shwartzman reaction.