Escherichia coli heat-stable enterotoxin: rapid method of purification and some characteristics of the toxin

Abstract

In this study we used Escherichia coli strain F11(P155) of porcine origin. The heat-stable enterotoxin (ST) was produced with a batch fermentor under agitation (500 rpm) and forced aeration (5 liters/min) in Casamino Acids yeast extract medium containing 0.2% glucose. The pH varied from 7.2 to 7.8. The maximum amount of ST was obtained after 7 h of growth. ST was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, ultrafiltration on Amicon membranes, and chromatography in Bio-Gel P-4. The enterotoxin, which was purified approximately 1,000 times, was active at nanogram levels. On 20% polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, ST exhibited an Rf of 0.6 ST was recovered from the gel slices by eluting in buffer and testing the activity in suckling mice, since no band appeared on the gel after staining with Coomasie brilliant blue R, Schiff reagent, or red oil. ST was resistant at pH 2 to 10 and at 100 degrees C for 15 min, but it was inactivated at 121 degrees C; it did not lose biological activity after treatment with pronase, lipase, or amylase. In suckling mice antiserum obtained from rabbits or goats immunized with ST neutralized the enterotoxin activity of a cell-free supernatant of purified ST.