RESTORATION OF VIRULENCE TO A STRAIN OF SHIGELLA FLEXNERI BY MATING WITH ESCHERICHIA COLI.

Formal, Samuel B. (Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Washington, D.C.), E. H. LaBrec, H. Schneider, and Stanley Falkow. Restoration of virulence to a strain of Shigella flexneri by mating with Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 89:835-838. 1965.-Three spontaneous avirulent variants of Shigella flexneri 5 were isolated and employed as genetic recipients in matings with Escherichia coli K-12. The various hybrid classes isolated from these matings were subsequently examined for their ability to induce keratoconjunctivitis and to kill pretreated guinea pigs. All hybrids derived from two of the variants remained avirulent. A majority of the mal(+) hybrids of the third avirulent variant were observed to be restored to complete virulence.