Chemiluminescence as a tool for the evaluation of antimicrobial agents: a review.

Chemiluminescence is a measure of the respiratory burst of phagocytic immune cells following stimulation by antigen. Measurement of chemiluminescence by scintillation counters set in the out of coincidence mode or by instruments designed specifically to measure chemiluminescence is an accurate, reproducible means of evaluating the immune potential of chemiluminescence emiting cell populations. One area under recent investigation has been the study of the effect of antimicrobial agents on the ability of various immune cell populations to emit chemiluminescence. This technique permits the investigator to test the effect of a drug on the activity of immune cell populations. The purpose of this review is to describe chemiluminescence, the basic kinetics of the response following stimulation with various antigens, and the reported effects of antimicrobial agents on chemiluminescence which have appeared in the literature.