Two physically and serologically distinct lipopolysaccharide profiles in strains of Bordetella pertussis and their phenotype variants.

The lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from nine strains representing 18 phenotype variants of Bordetella pertussis could be grouped into one of two distinct profiles by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and silver staining. One group, representing the wild-type LPS profile of B. pertussis, consisted of two silver-staining bands: a dominant brown-amber a band and a faster-migrating, minor, black-staining b band. The second group, representing a variant LPS profile, consisted of a single black-staining band of similar mobility to the b band in the wild-type profile. By electrophoretic transfer (Western) blot analysis, mouse antiserum raised against whole cells of Tohama I (prototype wild-type LPS strain) recognized only the a band from all strains/phenotypes possessing the wild-type LPS profile. In contrast, mouse antiserum raised against whole cells of 134 (prototype variant LPS strain) recognized all b bands, regardless of strain/phenotype, and could be shown to cross-react weakly with the a band from Tohama I. These results and results from cohemagglutination and immunodiffusion analyses support the classification of B. pertussis into one of two physiologically and serologically distinct LPS phenotypes: Lps AB for the wild-type profile and Lps B for the variant profile. The relationship of LPS type and phenotypic, or "phase," variation is discussed.