Brucella outer membrane lipoprotein shares antigenic determinants with Escherichia coli Braun lipoprotein and is exposed on the cell surface.

In an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), purified Brucella abortus and Escherichia coli peptidoglycan-linked lipoproteins gave a strong cross-reaction with sera from rabbits hyperimmunized with the heterologous lipoprotein. When smooth E. coli cells were used as ELISA antigens, the immunological cross-reaction was not observed unless the cells were treated to remove lipopolysaccharide and other outer membrane components. In contrast, intact cells from smooth strains of B. abortus and Brucella melitensis bound anti-lipoprotein immunoglobulin G, and the controls performed by ELISA showed that this reaction was not due to antibodies to the lipopolysaccharide, group 3 outer membrane proteins, or porins. Electron microscopy of cells labeled with antilipoprotein serum and protein A-colloidal gold showed specific labeling of smooth cells from both B. abortus and B. melitensis, even though unspecific labeling by nonimmune serum was observed with rough B. abortus. These results confirm the close similarity between E. coli and Brucella peptidoglycan-linked lipoproteins and show that, in contrast to E. coli, the lipoprotein of B. abortus and B. melitensis is partially exposed on the surface of smooth cells.