FIG. 3.

Survival of C. perfringens vegetative cells and spores in hyperchlorhydric and hypochlorhydric mice. Fasted wild-type mice were treated with histamine (gastric acid +), and fasted H⁺,K⁺-ATPase β-subunit-deficient mice were treated with diluent (gastric acid −). Thirty minutes later all mice were inoculated by gavage with 10⁸ CFU C. perfringens vegetative cells or spores. Mice were killed 30 min later, and the stomach, small intestine, and large intestine were removed. The samples were placed in PBS, homogenized, and spread on selective agar plates. The results are expressed as percent survival (number of bacteria isolated from each mouse/number of bacteria in the inoculum × 100). The horizontal bars indicate means. The data were analyzed using a two-tailed Student unpaired t test.