C. perfringens grows and produces sialidase in the intestines. (A) Shown are CFU per gram of intestinal tissue for F4969, its nanI null mutant, and the complementing strain as measured by plate counting at 2, 4, and 6 h postinfection in mouse small intestinal loops. (B) Sialidase activity present in supernatants of the intestinal contents of panel A loops at 2, 4, and 6 h postinfection. All data showed the mean values from 6 mice. Error bars indicate the SD. *, P < 0.05 relative to F4969 wild-type strain.