Production of toxic shock syndrome-like illness in rabbits by Staphylococcus aureus D4508: association with enterotoxin A.
Staphylococcus aureus D4508, obtained from a patient with nonmenstrual toxic shock syndrome (TSS), produced enterotoxin A while not making other known enterotoxins or TSS toxin 1. Concentrated culture fluids of the organism, administered subcutaneously in miniosmotic pumps, induced TSS-like symptoms (four of six animals succumbed). Identical culture fluids pretreated with anti-enterotoxin A serum failed to induce symptoms except for fever (none of six animals succumbed). Purified staphylococcal enterotoxin A also had the ability to induce TSS-like symptoms. These data suggest that enterotoxin A is the major TSS-associated toxin made by strain D4508.
McCollister
B D
BD
Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455.
Kreiswirth
B N
BN
Novick
R P
RP
Schlievert
P M
PM
D000818:Animals; D003470:Culture Media; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000502:physiology; D011817:Rabbits; D012772:Shock, Septic / Q000382:microbiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000472:pathogenicity*
D003470:Culture Media; D004768:Enterotoxins; C026066:enterotoxin A, Staphylococcal