Intestinal absorption of bacterial antigens in normal adult mice. I. Preparation and characterization of the antigens.

The preparation of flagellin (FLA) from Salmonella adelaide and Boivin antigen (BA) from Vibrio cholerae is described. These two antigens differed chemically from each other and showed marked differences in their degradability by mouse intestinal juice in vitro and in their fate in the intact mouse when given intravenously. Unlike BA, FLA was rapidly degraded in intestinal juice and readily sequestered and degraded by the liver. The suitability of these antigens in oral absorption studies is discussed.