Clinical isolates of Bacteroides gingivalis from several different locations were screened for the presence of fimbriae, primarily by immunological methods. About 60% of the strains tested had fimbriae as determined by agglutination with rabbit anti-fimbriae sera, and about two-thirds reacted with the anti-fimbrilin sera. The high detection rate of fimbriae implies that B. gingivalis fimbriae may play an important role in the adherence of this organism to host cells. These studies also suggest that not all strains share fimbriae cross-reactive with the fimbriae of B. gingivalis 381. The non-reactive strains may be devoid of fimbriae or may have fimbriae of different antigenic types.
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