Biomaterial Database

Fever and the control of gram-negative bacteria. 1994

M H Green, and C W Vermeulen

Biology Department, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla 92093-0630.

Although it seems obvious that fever has some important general adaptive value, it is still not clear by what means this function is manifested. One postulate is that febrile conditions result in the sequestration of soluble iron, effectively starving some pathogens of that essential nutrient. On the basis of our recent experiments, we propose a new mechanism for how fever serves to restrict a wide range of Gram-negative bacteria. The elevated temperature prevents the bacteria from synthesizing their protective LPS, thereby enabling serum complement to perforate and kill the invading pathogens even prior to the production of host antibodies.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008070	Lipopolysaccharides	Lipid-containing polysaccharides which are endotoxins and important group-specific antigens. They are often derived from the cell wall of gram-negative bacteria and induce immunoglobulin secretion. The lipopolysaccharide molecule consists of three parts: LIPID A, core polysaccharide, and O-specific chains (O ANTIGENS). When derived from Escherichia coli, lipopolysaccharides serve as polyclonal B-cell mitogens commonly used in laboratory immunology. (From Dorland, 28th ed)	Lipopolysaccharide,Lipoglycans
D001831	Body Temperature	The measure of the level of heat of a human or animal.	Organ Temperature,Body Temperatures,Organ Temperatures,Temperature, Body,Temperature, Organ,Temperatures, Body,Temperatures, Organ
D003170	Complement Pathway, Alternative	Complement activation initiated by the interaction of microbial ANTIGENS with COMPLEMENT C3B. When COMPLEMENT FACTOR B binds to the membrane-bound C3b, COMPLEMENT FACTOR D cleaves it to form alternative C3 CONVERTASE (C3BBB) which, stabilized by COMPLEMENT FACTOR P, is able to cleave multiple COMPLEMENT C3 to form alternative C5 CONVERTASE (C3BBB3B) leading to cleavage of COMPLEMENT C5 and the assembly of COMPLEMENT MEMBRANE ATTACK COMPLEX.	Alternative Complement Pathway,Properdin Pathway,Alternative Complement Activation Pathway,Complement Activation Pathway, Alternative
D005334	Fever	An abnormal elevation of body temperature, usually as a result of a pathologic process.	Pyrexia,Fevers,Pyrexias
D006090	Gram-Negative Bacteria	Bacteria which lose crystal violet stain but are stained pink when treated by Gram's method.	Gram Negative Bacteria
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D016905	Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections	Infections caused by bacteria that show up as pink (negative) when treated by the gram-staining method.	Bacterial Infections, Gram-Negative,Infections, Gram-Negative Bacterial,Bacterial Infection, Gram-Negative,Gram Negative Bacterial Infections,Gram-Negative Bacterial Infection,Infection, Gram-Negative Bacterial