WASSERMANN REACTION 857 



(i) Which is more important, the anticomplementary or antigenic 

 titration and why? 



EXERCISE 36. WASSERMANN REACTION 

 EXPERIMENT 87. ANTICOMPLEMENTARY ACTION OF SERUMS 



1. Secure 1 c.c. of five different specimens of human serums which have been 

 standing in the laboratory for one, two, four, six, and ten days respectively. The 

 last specimen should be intentionally infected with a culture of staphylococcus. 



2. Divide each serum into two portions and heat portion "B" to 56 C. for half 

 an hour. 



3. Place 0.2 c.c. of each specimen (unheated) in a series of five test-tubes. 



4. Place 0.2 c.c. of each specimen (heated) in a second series of five test-tubes. 



5. To each tube add 1 c.c. of complement 1 : 20 and sufficient salt solution to 

 bring the total volume to 3 c.c. Shake gently and incubate for half an hour. Add 

 \y<i units of amboceptor and 1 c.c. corpuscle suspension to each tube and incubate 

 for one hour. 



6. A hemolytic system control (complement, corpuscles, and amboceptor) should 

 be included; also a corpuscle control. 



(a) Record your results. Are any of the serums anticomplementary? 

 How do you determine this? 



(b) What is meant by the terms anticomplementary action of a serum? 



(c) What significance has this phenomenon in complement-fixation 

 work? 



(d) Are anticomplementary bodies thermolabile or thermostabile? 

 May both exist? Under what conditions are each most likely to be 

 present? 



(e) How are thermolabile anticomplementary bodies removed or 

 their influence overcome? When a serum is three or more days old, 

 what is the chief object of heating it before it is used in a complement- 

 fixation test? 



(f) Does complement keep for three days? 



(g) Is it possible to remove the thermostabile anticomplementary 

 action of a serum? Could such a serum be used in a complement-fixa- 

 tion reaction? How is this condition of the serum detected? 



(h) Under what conditions is a serum likely to become anticomple- 

 mentary in action? Is a sterile serum likely to become anticomple- 

 mentary? 



EXERCISE 37. WASSERMANN REACTION (Continued) 

 EXPERIMENT 88. WASSERMANN REACTION (FIRST METHOD) 



1. Secure four specimens of blood: one from a known syphilitic person; the 

 second from a known normal person, the third and fourth. specimens for diagnosis. 

 Also a specimen of cerebrospinal fluid. 



