Binding of colloidal gold-labeled salivary proline-rich proteins to Actinomyces viscosus type 1 fimbriae.

Salivary proline-rich proteins (PRPs), which were purified from parotid saliva, were adsorbed onto 15-nm-diameter gold particles to visualize specific binding of the salivary molecules to Actinomyces viscosus type 1 fimbriae. Negatively stained preparations incubated with PRP-gold conjugates but not bovine serum albumin-gold complexes bound specifically to bacteria possessing type 1 fimbriae, A. viscosus T14V-J1 and 5519. Binding of the PRP-gold probes to strains deficient in type 1 fimbriae, i.e., strains 5951 (type 2 fimbriae only) and 147 (no fimbriae), was negligible.