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Antiserum
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Antiserum
In immunology, antiserum is a blood serum containing antibodies (either monoclonal or polyclonal) that is used to spread passive immunity to many diseases via blood donation (plasmapheresis). For example, convalescent serum, or passive antibody transfusion from a previous human survivor, was the only known effective treatment for Ebola infection with a high success rate of 7 out of 8 patients surviving.
Antisera are widely used in diagnostic virology laboratories. The most common use of antiserum in humans is as antitoxin or antivenom to treat envenomation.[citation needed]
Serum therapy, also known as serotherapy, describes the treatment of infectious diseases using the serum of animals that have been immunized against the specific organism or components of that organism that is causing the infection.
In 1890, Emil von Behring and Kitasato Shibasaburō published their first paper on serum therapy.
Behring pioneered the technique, using guinea pigs to produce serum. Based on his observation that people who survived infection with the diphtheria bacterium never became infected again, he discovered that the body continually produces an antitoxin, which prevents survivors of infections from being infected again with the same organism.
It was necessary for Behring to immunize larger animals in order to produce enough serum to protect humans, because the amount of antiserum produced by guinea pigs was too little to be practical. Horses proved to be the best serum producer, as the serum of other large animals was not concentrated enough, and it was believed that horses did not carry any diseases that could be transferred to humans.
Due to World War I, a large number of horses were needed for military purposes. It was difficult for Behring to find enough German horses for his serum facility. He chose to obtain horses from Eastern European countries, mostly Hungary and Poland. Because of Behring's limited financial resources, most of the horses he selected were intended for slaughter; however, the usefulness of the animal to others had no influence on the production of serum. Serum horses were calm, well-mannered, and in good health. Age, breed, height, and color were irrelevant.
Horses were transported from Poland or Hungary to the Behring facilities in Marburg, in the West-Central part of Germany. Most of the horses were transported by rail and treated like any other freight load. During the interminable border crossing, horses were left at the mercy of the weather. Once the horses arrived in Marburg, they had 3 to 4 weeks to recover in a quarantine facility, where their data was recorded. They had to be in perfect medical condition for the immunization, and the quarantine facility ensured that they were free of microbes which could infect the other horses. In the Behring facilities, the horses were viewed as life savers; therefore, they were well treated. A few of the individual horses used for serum production were named, and celebrated for their service to medicine, both human and non-human.
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Antiserum
In immunology, antiserum is a blood serum containing antibodies (either monoclonal or polyclonal) that is used to spread passive immunity to many diseases via blood donation (plasmapheresis). For example, convalescent serum, or passive antibody transfusion from a previous human survivor, was the only known effective treatment for Ebola infection with a high success rate of 7 out of 8 patients surviving.
Antisera are widely used in diagnostic virology laboratories. The most common use of antiserum in humans is as antitoxin or antivenom to treat envenomation.[citation needed]
Serum therapy, also known as serotherapy, describes the treatment of infectious diseases using the serum of animals that have been immunized against the specific organism or components of that organism that is causing the infection.
In 1890, Emil von Behring and Kitasato Shibasaburō published their first paper on serum therapy.
Behring pioneered the technique, using guinea pigs to produce serum. Based on his observation that people who survived infection with the diphtheria bacterium never became infected again, he discovered that the body continually produces an antitoxin, which prevents survivors of infections from being infected again with the same organism.
It was necessary for Behring to immunize larger animals in order to produce enough serum to protect humans, because the amount of antiserum produced by guinea pigs was too little to be practical. Horses proved to be the best serum producer, as the serum of other large animals was not concentrated enough, and it was believed that horses did not carry any diseases that could be transferred to humans.
Due to World War I, a large number of horses were needed for military purposes. It was difficult for Behring to find enough German horses for his serum facility. He chose to obtain horses from Eastern European countries, mostly Hungary and Poland. Because of Behring's limited financial resources, most of the horses he selected were intended for slaughter; however, the usefulness of the animal to others had no influence on the production of serum. Serum horses were calm, well-mannered, and in good health. Age, breed, height, and color were irrelevant.
Horses were transported from Poland or Hungary to the Behring facilities in Marburg, in the West-Central part of Germany. Most of the horses were transported by rail and treated like any other freight load. During the interminable border crossing, horses were left at the mercy of the weather. Once the horses arrived in Marburg, they had 3 to 4 weeks to recover in a quarantine facility, where their data was recorded. They had to be in perfect medical condition for the immunization, and the quarantine facility ensured that they were free of microbes which could infect the other horses. In the Behring facilities, the horses were viewed as life savers; therefore, they were well treated. A few of the individual horses used for serum production were named, and celebrated for their service to medicine, both human and non-human.