Adenosine triphosphate content of Mycobacterium leprae: effect of purification procedures.

Various procedures to decontaminate and purify M leprae free of host tissue material resulted in total retention of their intracellular ATP and also infectiousness. The ATP content of one million M. leprae cells, isolated from either livers, spleens, or lymph nodes of infected armadillos, or a nude mouse foot pad or a human biopsy specimen, was in the range of 1.17 to 1.40 picograms. Suspensions could be decontaminated with 4% NaOH and all non-bacterial ATP could be eliminated by the combined action of trypsin, chymotrypsin, and collagenase initially, followed by Triton X-100 plus ATPase. These findings further assure that M. leprae are different from M. lepraemurium in that they can withstand even the severest purification procedures that are necessary in order for them to be used for sophisticated biochemical and metabolic studies.