SEPARATION OF MYCOBACTERIAL ANTIGENS BY ION-EXCHANGE CHROMATOGRAPHY .I. DETAILS OF CHROMATOGRAPHIC + IMMUNOLOGIC PROCEDURES + RESULTS WITH 4 STRAINS OF M TUBERCULOSIS

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Abstract
Ion-exchange chromatography has been applied to the separation of antigens from culture filtrates of four strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The method reproducibly separated the antigens into distinctive recognizable fractions, each containing two to eight antigens. The term antigen signifies a constituent of a fraction or filtrate responsible for a single precipitin band in immunodiffusion. Of the approximately 20 antigens contained in any culture filtrate, half cross-reacted with mycobacteria in other groups, especially Group I (M. kansasii). At least one-fourth of the antigens were species-specific, limited to M. tuberculosis strains. These deserve special consideration as potential diagnostic antigens. Almost one-fourth of the antigens seemed specific for a single strain. Possibly one or more may be found related to virulence. With refinement, ion-exchange chromatography may permit isolation of relatively pure antigens.