Ultrastructural localization of carbohydrates on thin sections of Staphylococcus aureus with silver methenamine and wheat germ agglutinin-gold complex.

Postembedding staining of intracellular carbohydrates on thin sections of Staphylococcus aureus was studied by the silver methenamine and the wheat germ agglutinin-gold techniques. Staining of silver grains was observed on both the cell wall and the cross wall. The staining was interpreted to be due to teichoic acid. Labeling by wheat germ agglutinin-gold particles was observed on both the cell wall and the cross wall, and the staining pattern resembled that of silver methenamine staining. Therefore, the labeling was considered to be due to N-acetylglucosamine of teichoic acid. The combination of two types of cytochemical techniques was useful to localize and characterize the carbohydrates of the bacterial cell.