Immunochemical characterization of type i carbohydrate antigen of "Streptococcus milleri" (Streptococcus anginosus)

Type-specific carbohydrate antigen of the serotype i "Streptococcus milleri" was extracted with trichloroacetic acid from purified cell walls of the type strain K39K. The extracts were then purified by chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex A-25 and Sephadex G-100 columns. The purified serotype i carbohydrate antigen produced a single precipitin band against its homologous type-specific antiserum, which fused with the band produced by the autoclaved extract of the type strain cells. The serotype i antigen was a polysaccharide composed of rhamnose, galactose and glucose in a molar ratio of 1.6:6.8:1.0. The quantitative precipitin inhibition test with various haptenic sugars showed that galactose as well as lactose produced the greatest inhibition, which suggested that a galactose in terminal beta linkage is the immunodeterminant of the serotype i-specific antigen. Galactose was detected in the autoclaved extracts from cells of all the 15 serotype i strains tested.