FIG. 4.

An altered rodlet layer may be responsible for increased uptake of ΔlaeA spores. (A) Swollen spores were prepared by incubating in RPMI 10 for 7 h at 300 rpm. Conidial swelling, which results in loss of the rodlet layer, eliminated the difference in peritoneal macrophage uptake between wild-type and ΔlaeA spores. (B) Resting spores were sonicated to remove the rodlet layer, and uptake of sonicated spores was compared to resting spores. The difference in uptake between wild-type and ΔlaeA spores decreased following sonication. Results of two independent experiments per figure (n = 4 mice per experiment) are shown as the mean percent uptake ± SEM. *, P < 0.05.