The Detection of Specific Complement-Fixing Antibodies in Serum of White-Tailed Deer (Odocqileus Virginianus) with Theileria Infection

摘要

A complement-fixation (CF) antigen which has been prepared from >Theileria infected erythrocytes is capable of reacting to specific serum antibodies of deer acutely infected with >Theileria.No sera from 17 deer known to be free of >Theileria infection reacted positively to the CF test. Of 35 tests on sera from 12 infected deer having a parasitemia of 2% or less and no accompanying anemia, only 10 (29%) were positive, 2 (6%) were suspicious, and 23 (66%) were negative. Of 65 tests on 8 acutely infected deer, 49 (75%) were positive, 4 (6%) were suspicious and 12 (18%) were negative. Of the 8 deer in which acute theileriasis occurred all reacted to >Theileria antigen at one time or another.A significant correlation was found between CF titers and the degree of parasitemia in acute infections.Rabbits were hyperimmunized using erythrocytes from either normal or >Theileria infected deer. Reciprocal absorption of the hyperimmune sera with >Theileria and normal erythrocytic antigens demonstrated the presence of antibodies specific for >Theileria.