The ultrastructure of 19 strains (15 species) of Mycoplasmatales grown on solid medium was studied with the aid of an electron microscope. The cells possessed a triple-layered limiting membrane 75 to 100 A thick. This membrane appeared to be symmetrical in some strains and asymmetrical in others. An electron-dense material found in close contact with the cell surface was tentatively interpreted to be a capsular substance. Ribosomes and strands of nuclear material were observed in the cytoplasm of cells of all strains. Ribosomes observed in the JA strain of M. gallisepticum were frequently arranged in a regular geometric pattern of characteristic appearance. Dense inclusions sometimes limited by triple-layered membranes (possibly developing elementary bodies), as well as membrane-surrounded vesicles, were observed in the cytoplasm of cells of some strains.
The proteins of 14 strains of Mycoplasma hominis were compared by SDS-PAGE in gradient gels, by two-dimensional (2D) gel electrophoresis of extracts of 35S-labelled cells and by immunoblot analysis of cell proteins. The strains examined included the M. hominis type strain PG21 and 13 others isolated variously from genital tract, mouth, blood, upper urinary tract and a wound. These 14 strains shared 76-99% of proteins in SDS-gradient gel analysis and 41-72% in the 2D gels. As expected, the immunoblot analysis likewise revealed the existence of an extensive common protein pattern in M. hominis, in addition to a number of antigens shared only by some strains.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.