SPECIFICITY IN STABILIZING SUSPENSIONS OF RICKETTSIA RICKETTSII
Abstract
The infectivity of suspensions of partially purified Rocky Mountain spotted fever rickettsiae was maintained at a high level during storage at 4 C for 1 week or longer by 0.1 M glutamine, but only for much shorter periods by lower concentrations (0.05 M, 0.01M) of this compound. This stabilization may be related to the prevention of loss of metabolically important glutamate from these organisms, or to a stabilization of the structure of the rickettsiae, or to both. In any case, there appears to be a specificity of chemical structure required for stabilization. Glutamine and glutamate were outstandingly effective, asparagine provided some stability but of a much lower level, and other compounds tested that have no similarity to glutamine, such as inositol and thiourea, were completely ineffective. The stabilizing effect of glutamine on partially purified rickettsiae was enhanced greatly by the addition of 0.3% bovine albumin. Crude yolk-sac suspensions of Rickettsia rickettsii were not stabilized by 0.1 M glutamine; however, addition of both bovine albumin and glutamine to yolk-sac samples overcame the poor stability of the rickettsiae in this type of suspension. It appears that only certain types of protein can produce conditions favorable for maintenance of rickettsial infectivity in yolk sac preparations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 1965
- Accession Number
- AD0464213
Entities
People
- Edward N. Gilman
- Ralph F. Wachter
Organizations
- United States Army Biological Warfare Laboratories