Immunochemical studies on Staphylococcus aureus plasma membrane. I. Isolation and chemical characterization.

Cytoplasma membrane and lipoteichoic acid (LTA) were isolated from S. aureus Cowan I and analysed chemically. Pure membrane was obtained by using human IgG coupled to Sepharose, which then absorbed all cell wall fragments due to the interaction between IgG and protein A on the wall. LTA, shown to be a glucosylglycerol teichoic acid containing ester-linked alanine and pentadecanoic acid as the major fatty acid, was also present in the isolated membrane but only as a minor component. Other carbohydrate, protein and lipid components which were present as a chemical complex, dominated the membrane preparations.