title: Electrophoretic analysis of heterogeneous lipopolysaccharides from various strains of Vibrio vulnificus biotypes 1 and 2 by silver staining and immunoblotting.
abstract: Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) of 11 strains of Vibrio vulnificus biotypes 1 and 2, isolated from an eel farm, and of 10 reference strains, were examined by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis coupled with silver staining and immunoblotting. LPS samples were obtained from whole-cell lysates, outer membrane fragments, and extracellular products. By silver staining, only a diffuse band of low-molecular weight could be visualized in all cases except for a biotype 1 strain isolated from water. However, immunoblotting with antisera obtained against strains of biotypes 1 and 2 from eels allowed visualization of multiple O-polysaccharide chains. All biotype 2 strains, independently of their origins, belonged to the same serotype and presented the same LPS profile, whereas eel isolates of biotype 1 were serologically identical and different from the rest of tested strains of biotype 1. This is the first report of LPSs with a ladder-like structure in Vibrio vulnificus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Valencia, Burjassot, Spain.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Amaro
authors.forename: E G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Biosca
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fouz
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Garay
mesh_terms: D000372:Agglutination Tests; D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D015153:Blotting, Western; D004524:Eels / Q000382:microbiology; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D019081:O Antigens; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D011817:Rabbits; D016622:Silver Staining; D013045:Species Specificity; D014733:Vibrio / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D019081:O Antigens; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial