FIG 4.
clsABC-dependent CL biosynthesis is dispensable for S. Typhimurium to colonize the gastrointestinal tract of mice. (A) Five C57BL/6J mice per group were infected by oral gavage with 1 × 108 CFU of the wild type or the ΔclsABC mutant. Each point on the graph represents the mean CFU/g of stool ± SEM. A two-way ANOVA was done to assess significance, and no statistical difference (ns) was observed between the strains at each time point. (B) The survival of C57BL/6J-streptomycin-treated mice was monitored for 21 days after intragastric infection with roughly 1 × 105 CFU of the wild-type strain (n = 8) and ΔclsABC (n = 8). Data are shown as percent survival. A Log-rank (Mantel-Cox) test was executed to determine significance, and a statistical difference, P < 0.05 (*), was found between curves. The median days of survival for the mice infected with the wild-type and ΔclsABC-mutant bacteria were 6 and 7 days, respectively.