Abstract
Summary: We developed a micromethod, requiring but a few drops of blood, for measuring the ability of neutrophils to kill ingested Candida albicans. The neutrophils of 10 normal adults killed 26.2 ± 9.5% of ingested C. albicans in 2.5 hr in a standard fungicidal assay, and 21.4 ± 6.5% in our new micromodification. Neutrophils from 14 full term, healthy 30− to 40-hr-old infants, studied with the micromethod, killed 23.2 ± 6.0% of ingested C. albicans. We conclude that the neutrophils of normal neonates are competent in this sphere of antimicrobial activity.
Speculation: Traditional methods of measuring the microbicidal activity of leukocytes are frequently unsuited for the study of neonates because they require considerable amounts of blood. Micromethods, such as the one herein described, may facilitate analysis of the host factors related to infections in newborns and infants.
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Oseas, R., Lehrer, R. A Micromethod for Measuring Neutrophil Candidacidal Activity in Neonates. Pediatr Res 12, 828–829 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197808000-00004
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197808000-00004
