Serological Relationships Among Strains ofErwinia chrysanthemi

Abstract

Serological relationships among 27 strains of E. chrysanthemi isolated from 18 different hosts were determined by agglutination and Ouchterlony double-diffusion tests of a membrane protein complex (MPC) extracted from whole cells. Antisera were prepared to MPC of 5 strains of E. chrysanthemi and 1 strain each of E. carotovora and Salmonella typhimurium. Agglutination tests were useful only for differentiation strains of E. chrysanthemi from other Erwinia spp. Strains of E. chrysanthemi were grouped into 4 serovars. There was no correlation between host of origin and serovar. Immunoelectrophoretic studies revealed that the MPC of E. chrysanthemi contained 2 immunogens, 1 neutral and 1 acidic. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis profiles of MPC of E. chrysanthemi showed 1-4 major protein bands with MW ranging from 26,000-43,000. Agglutination and agar double diffusion tests with MPC were a rapid, accurate method of identifying E. chrysanthemi.