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. 1984 Jan;43(1):440–441. doi: 10.1128/iai.43.1.440-441.1984

Experimental Klebsiella pneumoniae burn wound sepsis: role of capsular polysaccharide.

S J Cryz Jr, F Fürer, R Germanier
PMCID: PMC263459  PMID: 6360907

Abstract

The role of Klebsiella pneumoniae capsular polysaccharide in relation to virulence in a murine burn wound sepsis model was investigated. Burn trauma markedly predisposed mice to lethal K. pneumoniae sepsis. A highly encapsulated variant (KP1-O) derived from K. pneumoniae KP1 was found to be extremely virulent for burned mice (50% lethal dose less than 10 organisms), whereas another variant (KP1-T), which possessed a much smaller capsule, was comparatively nonvirulent (50% lethal dose greater than 10(6) organisms). Production of large quantities of capsular material by KP1-O allowed for its rapid growth in vivo and persistence in the blood and liver. These traits were not demonstrated by KP1-T, which was effectively cleared after challenge.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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