Studies of Delayed Hypersensitivity in Vitro

Guinea pigs experimentally infected with mumps virus develop a delayed, hypersensitive skin reaction following the intradermal injection of heat-inactivated mumps virus. This in vivo hypersensitivity is accompanied by a state of cellular hypersensitivity which can be demonstrated in vitro by the addition of mumps viral antigen to cultures of splenic macrophages, following which they become less motile and undergo lysis. These observations support the hypothesis that the state of hypersensitivity which develops early in mumps virus infections may have a role in the pathogenesis of the disease.