[Comparative characteristics of antigenic peculiarities and several other properties of stable long-term cultures of salmonella L-forms].

Enzymatic properties, sensitivity to antibiotics and peculiarities of the antigenic structure of stable L-forms of S. paratyphi B (L-115), S. typhimurium (L-71a-16) and S. typhi (L-5761) were studied. In difference from the initial strains, the L-form under study possessed a high penicillin and ampicillin sensitivity, and also a marked sensitivity to polymyxin and detergents; this characterized them as L-forms of protoplastic type. All the L-variants differed considerably by the enzymatic properties from the initial strains, and, in the majority of cases, retained the antigenic components and the species-specificity characteristic of the initial parental cultures. Despite the loss of the cell wall the synthesis of O-antigen in the L-forms under study was undisturbed. The 6-forms contained an antigenic component not found in the initial cultures and apparently causing the neutralizing activity of the L-antiser.