Identification of a Streptococcus salivarius cell wall component mediating coaggregation with Veillonella alcalescens V1.

Cell walls of Streptococcus salivarius HB aggregated Veillonella alcalescens V1, but cell walls of the mutant S. salivarius HB-V5 did not. We found no correlation between the presence of fimbriae on streptococcal walls and the ability to aggregate Veillonella strains. Treatment of the walls with lysozyme solubilized a fraction which possessed Veillonella-aggregating activity. Solubilized cell wall preparations of strain HB contained three major (glyco)proteins as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and at least four antigens as determined by immunoelectrophoresis with antiserum prepared against strain HB walls. A specific antiserum, which was obtained by adsorption of anti-HB serum on strain HB-V5 cells, contained monospecific antibody that reacted with the solubilized strain HB wall preparation. Similar fractions prepared from strain HB-V5 cell walls did not possess aggregating activity and lacked one protein band (protein I) after sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and one antigen (antigen b) after immunoelectrophoresis. The same antigen was absent when lysozyme-solubilized wall preparations of strain HB were reacted with anti-HB-V5 serum. Crossed-immunoisoelectric focusing indicated that this specific (glyco)protein and this antigen were identical and had an isoelectric point of 4.60. Protein I and antigen b were specifically adsorbed when solubilized strain HB cell walls were incubated with V. alcalescens V1 but were not adsorbed by nonaggregating Veillonella parvula ATCC 10790 cells. Culture supernatants of strain HB contained V. alcalescens V1-aggregating activity. Antigen b was present in the culture supernatant, but was not found in cultures of strain HB-V5. A total of 18 S. salivarius isolates possessing the streptococcal group K antigen released aggregating activity and antigen b into the culture medium, but 11 strains which lacked the K-antigen did not.