Table 6.

M. avium 104, A5, and 4B2 mutant binding to the mucin.

Bacteria	Binding
	% bacteria to MUC2 mucin	% bacteria to MUC5b mucin
M. avium 104	0	0
M. avium A5	0	0
M. avium 4B2	32 ± 3∗	36 ± 8∗

Results demonstrated that the cell wall-associate mutant has increased ability to interact with MUC2 and MUC5b mucins. ^∗p < 0.05 compared to the binding of the wild-type bacteria. M. avium 4B2 has been described previously, and it is deficient in colonization of the intestinal and respiratory mucosa. The mutant and wild-type were inhabited in a surface covered by MUC2 or MUC5b.