Diagnostic importance of H-antigens in Yersinia enterocolitica and other Yersinia species.

H-antigens of 1,622 strains of Y. enterocolitica, Y. frederiksenii, Y. kristensenii, and Y. intermedia were examined according to the antigenic scheme of Wauters in order to evaluate the importance of their antigens for the species diagnosis and epidemiological purposes. Yersinia are monophasic bacteria with species-specific H-antigens. Flagellar antigens of Y. frederiksenii, Y. kristensenii, and Y. intermedia turned out to be rather homogeneous without distinct subfactors. The scope of identified serovars was narrow in these species. On the other hand, flagellar antigens of Y. enterocolitica were mostly composed of several subfactors, and 117 serovars were differentiated. The epidemiological value of complete serotyping was demonstrated by strains from different sources. Four new O- and 22 new H-antigens were identified in these studies.