Tonsillar application of killed Streptococcus mutans induces specific antibodies in rabbit saliva and blood plasma without inducing a cross-reacting antibody to human cardiac muscle.

When Streptococcus mutans cells are injected into the skeletal muscle of rabbits, an antibody against human cardiac muscle, as well as an anti-S. mutans antibody, is induced in blood plasma. Our previous study showed that when sheep erythrocytes are applied to palatine tonsils, an antibody against the applied cells is induced both in blood plasma and saliva. This antibody has no activity against cardiac muscle. It is not clear, however, if S. mutans application to the tonsils evokes an antibody response against cardiac muscle. In this study, we immunized rabbits against S. mutans or Streptococcus sobrinus by tonsillar application or by intramuscular injection every 3 days for 6 weeks. Tonsillar applications of formalin-killed cells of S. mutans induced saliva immunoglobulin A (IgA) and blood plasma IgG to the applied cells. In contrast, intramuscular injection of such cells induced only blood plasma IgG. When the route of immunization was intramuscular injection, antibodies in blood plasma cross-reacted with cardiac muscle. By enzyme-immunohistochemistry and Ouchterlony immunodiffusion tests, no cross-reaction to cardiac muscle was observed with the antibody in saliva or in blood plasma after the tonsillar applications. Western blotting of the S. mutans antigen showed that blood plasma from rabbits injected with S. mutans reacted with antigens of 46, 52, 62, and 85 kDa, while that from rabbits subjected to tonsillar application of S. mutans did not react with these bands. Similar results were obtained for S. sobrinus applications. Thus, tonsillar applications of mutants group streptococci induce antibodies differing in antigen specificity and do not induce any cross-reacting antibody to cardiac muscle.