ISOLATION OF TRICHOPHYTIN GLYCOPEPTIDE AND ITS STRUCTURE IN RELATION TO IMMEDIATE AND DELAYED REACTIONS

Abstract

A pure glycopeptide has been isolated from submerged cultures of Trichophyton mentagrophytes. It contains galactose and mannose in a ratio which varied from 13 to 1:8 and about 10-12 per cent of protein consisting of the following amino acids: aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine, proline, phenylalanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, threonine, and in trace amounts tyrosine, serine, and lysine. This glycopeptide will produce both immediate and delayed hypersensitivity reactions in man and guinea pigs. Degradation of the carbohydrate causes a great reduction in immediate reactions and degradation of the peptide causes a loss of the delayed reactivity.