Serological cross-reactivity among Sporothrix schenckii, Ceratocystis, Europhium, and Graphium species.

Ethanol-precipitable culture filtrate antigens of 100 strains of 75 species of the Sporothrix-Ceratocystis-Europhium-Graphium complex and 1 species of Botrytis were examined for neutral sugar components and for serological cross-reactivity with S. schenckii rabbit antiserum and human sporotrichosis sera by capillary precipitin and double immunodiffusion assay. Results revealed that cross-reactive species (60 of 77, ca. 80%) produced exoconidial forms and rhamnose- and mannose-containing polysaccharides and included Ceratocystis, the three known Europhium, and several Graphium-form species. Endoconidial-form Ceratocystis species did not cross-react.

Comparison of Coccidioides immitis arthrospore, mycelium, and spherule cell walls, and influence of growth medium on mycelial cell wall composition.

Comparative lipid content, cell wall yield, neutral monosaccharide, glucosamine, and protein (amino acid) contents of arthrospores, mycelia, and spherules of Coccidioides immitis Cash were studied. Cellular lipid contents were found in the decreasing order: spherules, arthrospores, mycelia. Lipid content of mycelia did not reach the level of arthrospores or spherules even when mycelia were grown on relatively rich media. Cell wall yields of spherules were lower than for mycelia when grown on comparable media. Cell walls of arthrospores, mycelia, spherules, and spherule culture filtrate all contained 3-O-methylmannose, mannose, and glucose, but in varying amounts. Cell wall yield and cell wall glucose content increased in mycelia grown in increasingly rich media, whereas mannose content either decreased or remained constant.

Fractionation and composition studies of skin test-active components of sensitins from Coccidioides immitis.

Coccidioidin skin-test activities from mycelial culture filtrates and autolysates were partially purified. Major chemical constituents included 3-O-methylmannose, mannose, and amino acids.

Unusual reducing sugar from Coccidioides immitis.

Documentation is offered for the identification of 3-O-methyl-mannose as one of several neutral sugars found in defatted arthrospore and mycelial cell walls of Coccidioides immitis.

Serological comparison of spherules and arthrospores of Coccidioides immitis.

Spherule and arthrospore cellular preparations were sonic-treated and separated into their respective supernatant and sediment components. Complement-fixation tests with antispherule and antiarthrospore pooled rabbit sera revealed that the soluble antigens exhibited more serological activity than the sediment preparations. After autoclaving, an arthrospore cellular antigen exhibited increased activity with either antisera, whereas autoclaved spherules exhibited increased activity only with antispherule serum. Complement-fixation tests with coccicioidin and spherule culture supernatant preparations revealed quantitative or qualitative differences in antigenic determinants between these two morphological phases of Coccidioides immitis.

Serological comparison of the three morphological phases of Coccidioides immitis by the agar gel diffusion method.

Hyperimmune sera against spherules and against arthrospores of Coccidioides immitis were prepared by inoculation of rabbits. The antibody content of these sera was studied by the agar gel diffusion method. It was observed that antispherule pooled sera formed multiple precipitin bands with extracts of spherules and of arthrospores. The antiarthrospore pooled serum, however, failed to precipitate with the spherule extract, and formed a single band in the presence of an arthrospore solution. When the spherule and the arthrospore extracts were tested with a variety of different antisera, it was observed that the spherule preparation formed bands only in combination with anti-purified spherule pooled serum, whereas the arthrospore extract precipitated with anti-purified spherule, antiarthrospore, and anti-Histoplasma capsulatum pooled sera. It was also observed that a spherule culture supernatant solution formed five precipitin bands in combination with anti-spherule pooled sera, formed one band with pooled antiserum from rabbits with coccidioidomycosis, and did not precipitate in the presence of antiarthrospore pooled serum. Coccidioidin, however, formed two bands in the presence of any of these antisera. It was therefore concluded that extracts from the spherule phase of C. immitis differed from solutions obtained from the arthrospore and mycelial phases.