Immunochemistry of a formamide-extracted antigen from Clostridium perfringens cell walls.

The type-specific antigen of a strain of Clostridium perfringens involved in food poisoning was isolated from the cell wall by the use of hot formamide. The antigen appears to consist of polysaccharide or mucopeptide. The formamide extract was shown to be heterogeneous by gel filtration on Sephadex G-200. The serologically active fraction contained about 25% of the amount of protein present in the original formamide extract. Hexosamine, acetyl groups, and carbohydrate also were detected. The formamide extract showed a high degree of serological activity. The serological activity was increased twofold on Sephadex gel filtration.