Fig 5.

Effect of preincubation of S epidermidis strain 10b with preimmune or αSesC-IgGs on the overall infection rates in the JVC mouse model. A single lumen polyethylene catheter was surgically inserted into the right jugular vein of Swiss-Webster mice. After 24 h, an overnight culture of S. epidermidis strain 10b (∼3E+08) in 0.9% NaCl was mixed with preimmune or αSesC-IgGs (80 μg/ml) or the same volume of PBS, followed by incubation for 2 h at 4°C. After a 24-h recovery from surgery, 150 μl (∼5E+07) of the mixture was injected through the catheter lumen. After 5 days, the overall infection rates in different organs and the catheter colonization were quantified. Data for each group were obtained from bacteria recovered from the catheter or organs of six infected mice (three mice per group in each experiment, three groups, two independent experiments). The error bars indicate the standard errors of the mean.