The Chemical Compositions in the Cell Wall of Salmonella typhimurium affecting the Clearance-Rate in Mouse

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In view of the significance of the bacterial surface as an important determinant for the host cell-parasite relationship, the rate of the bacterial clearance from the blood circulation or in the peritoneal cavity of mice was compared between the wild type Salmonella typhimurium LT2 and its mutants which have different sugar components in their cell wall. The mutants which are devoid of the tetrasaccharide sequence of abequosyl-mannosyl-rhamnosyl-galactose in their cell wall were rapidly eliminated from the circulating blood and the peritoneal cavity of mice after the injection, whereas the wild type strain and other strains having the tetrasaccharide sequence(s) were resistant to the clearance. Bacterial concentration did not affect the rate of clearance. 32P-labeled bacteria heat-killed at 58 C for 30 min retained the characteristics of the living organisms of each strain in clearance tests, and use of the killed labeled bacteria clarified that the tetrasaccharide sequence(s) in the cell wall is a determinant for preventing phagocytosis of the bacteria.