Purificationand Characterizationof Fimbriae of Vibrio choleraeO1, Classical Biotype, Inaba Serotype

Fimbrialsubunits have been shownto share commonantigenicitiesbetween Vibriocholeraebiotype El Tor and biotype classical(Ehara et al., 1987).The above fact was confirmedby western blotting and immunoelectron microscopy.Net-work and bun- dle formationswere observedin the fimbrialpreparationsby immunoelectronmicroscopy. Purified fimbriaeof VibriocholeraeO1, classicalbiotype possessed haemagglutinationac- tivity (HA) against chicken erythrocytes. This HA was inhibited in the presence of D-mannose but not by L-fucose. Antigenicdeterminantsof the fimbriae were exposed on the sides of the fiber. The low hydrophobicityof the fimbriae moleculerevealed by the amino acid compositionsuggests that the fimbriaemay interact with epithelialcells not by hydrophobicinteraction.Developmentof the antibody against fimbrial subunit of V. choleraeO1 was confirmedin the blood sera obtainedfrom convalescentcholera pa- tients.