Ultrastructure and chemical analysis of Campylobacter pylori flagella.

Flagella of Campylobacter pylori were analyzed by electron microscopy and purified, and the molecular weight of the flagellin was determined. Isolation of flagella was performed by mechanical shearing from the cell surface, sucrose density gradient centrifugation, and Sepharose CL-4B gel chromatography. The flagella of C. pylori differ from those of other Campylobacter species and of most other bacteria by the presence of a flagellar sheath. The sheath narrows at the end and is linked to a club-shaped terminal structure. The molecular weight of C. pylori flagellin was 51,000.