No systematic study on serotyping of Enterococcus faecalis has been reported since 1964 when M.E. Sharpe conducted serotyping of group D streptococcus in U.K. So, we attempted to re-evaluate serotyping of E. faecalis. For this purpose, we received 42 Sharpe's strains and first examined for their biochemical characteristics as E. faecalis. Only 9 of the 42 strains were identified as E. faecalis. We raised rabbit antisera against a large number of E. faecalis strains, including the 9 Sharpe's strains, 2 strains obtained from CDC in U.S.A. and 36 strains isolated from patients hospitalized in different cities of Japan. From the results of cross-agglutination tests and absorption tests performed on these antisera using a large number of E. faecalis strains, we were able to classify 21 distinct serotype strains and to prepare 21 monospecific typing antisera by absorption of the antisera to the type strains with appropriate cross-agglutinating strains. When 832 E. faecalis strains were serotyped with the 21 typing antisera, 638 strains (76.7%) were typable. Thus, we propose a provisional scheme of 21 distinct serovars in E. faecalis.

No abstract

A total of 124 normal school children in three classes (aged 8 to 9) were examined for beta-hemolytic streptococci for 29 months from August 1977 to December 1979 by means of serial monthly throat cultures. No significant difference between the carrier rate of boys and that of girls was observed. Although no monthly variation of carrier rates appeared in class II, marked temporal increases of carrier rates appeared from June 1978 (in Class I) and from August 1978 (in class III) to August 1979. These periodical variations of carrier rates observed in this investigation do not coincide with the low-in-summer and high-in-winter seasonal variation which has generally been observed by many other investigators. The average values of carrier rates throughout the period of this investigation were 30.9, 29.7, and 24.5% in classes 1, II, and III, respectively. The carrier rate of group A streptococci by month and by class showed some positive correlation with the carrier rate of total beta-hemolytic streptococci. Ttype 4 and T-untypable strains were not identified up to a certain period; then each strain appeared at a given time during the course of our investigation in one class, spread to all three classes, and continued to be isolated until the end of this investigation. The origin of these types of strains could not be identified in this study. Of the children, 36 (29.0%) never became streptococcal carriers during the period of examination and 88 (71.0%) became streptococcal carriers at least one time during the 29 examinations; among these positive carriers, 29 children (23.0%) showed positive results in more than 50% of the examinations.

In 1992, we reported a new scheme for identifying 21 distinct serovars of E. faecalis by the bacterial agglutination reaction. In this study we isolated strains of E. faecalis from the urine of patients with urinary tract infections and serotyped. We also serotyped strains of E. faecalis isolated from the faces of healthy persons. The results showed that serovars 2, 7, 1 and 3 were the major serotypes a distribution on strains of E. faecalis isolated from patients. Serovars 2, 1 and 13 were the major serotypes of the fecal strains isolated from healthy persons. Single serovars were typable of all strains of E. faecalis isolated from patients in 80.6% (395/496) and in 62.4% of the fecal strains. Examination of the hemolytic zone around colonies on horse/sheep blood agar plates showed that beta-hemolytic strains on horse blood agar plate isolated from patients had 36.1% for all isolated strains from patients and 8.3% for fecal strains isolated from healthy persons.

The existence of cross-reactive antigens between the genera Candida and Mycobacterium and their distributions among the following 7 strains of genus Candida and 9 strains of genus Mycobacterium were investigated by gel-diffusion precipitation and passive hemagglutination reaction: C. albicans 1001, C. krusei 1005, C. guilliermondii 1007, C. stellatoidea 1016, C. tropicalis 1003, C. parakrusei 10232, C. pseudotropicalis 1004, M. tuberculosis (H37Rv and Nakano), M. bovis (BCG and Miwa), M. avium (Takeo), M. phlei (Phlei), M. sinegmatis (Smegma and M607) and M. microti (Vole). Strong crossreactions between C. pseudotropicalis and various strains of Mycobacterium (H37Rv , Nakano, BCG and Miwa) were observed and weak cross-reactions between C. krusei and the same strains of Mycobacterium by both gel-diffusion precipitation and passive hemagglutination reaction. Cross-reactions were not observed by the same precipitation reaction between any other strains of Candida and any strains of Mycobacterium . By passive hemagglutination reactions, cross-reactions between C. albicans, C. guilliermondii or C. parakrusei and some strains of Mycobacterium were observed although the crossreactions between these strains were not demonstrated by gel-diffusion precipitation . Although existence of the cross-reactive antigens could not be demonstrated in the cells of C. stellatoidea and C. tropicalis by either gel-diffusion precipitation or the passive hemagglutination reaction, the cells of these two Candida strains could absorb the crossreactive antibodies from the anti-Mycobacterial sera which react to the antigens of C. pseudotropicalis and C. krusei. These results suggest that C. stellatoidea and C . tropicalis contain minor cross-reactive antigens which could not be demonstrated by direct methods. The results indicate rather wide distribution of the cross-reactive antigens among the genus Mycobacterium and of limited distributions among the genus Candida .