Altered colonizing ability for mouse large intestine of a surface mutant of a human faecal isolate of Escherichia coli.
Escherichia coli F-17 Sr a human faecal isolate, is resistant to the T-series of bacteriophages (i.e. T2 to T7). A T2-sensitive mutant of E. coli F-17 Sr was isolated following acriflavin treatment. This mutant, E. coli F-17 Sr Ts was found to be sensitive to the entire T-series of phages. E. coli F-17 Sr and E. coli F-17 Sr Ts did not differ quantitatively in total LPS content. However, analysis of LPS revealed that a large fraction of E. coli F-17 Sr Ts was devoid of O-side-chains. This accounted for the sensitivity of this strain to bacteriophages T3, T4, and T7. In addition, E. coli F-17 Sr Ts contained only about half the amount of capsular material contained by E. coli F-17 Sr accounting for the sensitivity of the mutant to bacteriophages T2, T5, and T6. Although the two strains colonized equally well when fed individually to streptomycin-treated mice, when fed simultaneously to streptomycin-treated mice, E. coli F-17 Sr Ts colonized at a level of about 1 x 10(8) cells (g faeces)-1, whereas E. coli F-17 Sr colonized at only 1 x 10(4) cells (g faeces)-1. These studies suggest that bacterial cell surface components modulate the large intestine colonizing ability of E. coli F-17 Sr in the mouse large intestine.
D000042:Absorption; D000818:Animals; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000032:analysis / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007420:Intestine, Large / Q000382:microbiology*; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D009154:Mutation; D010957:Plasmids; D013499:Surface Properties; D013604:T-Phages / Q000502:physiology
D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D008565:Membrane Proteins