Alginate Inhibition of the Uptake of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by Macrophages Simpson, Jeremy A. and Smith, Susan E. and Dean, Roger T.,, 134, 29-36 (1988), doi = https://doi.org/10.1099/00221287-134-1-29, publicationName = Microbiology Society, issn = 1350-0872, abstract= Pseudomonas aeruginosa alginate was purified and characterized in terms of uronic acid, carbohydrate and protein content, as well as by infra-red spectroscopy and gel electrophoresis. Added exogenous bacterial alginate inhibited the uptake and degradation of both viable and non-viable radiolabelled non-mucoid P. aeruginosa by resident mouse peritoneal macrophages. Alginic acid (from seaweed) inhibited the same parameters to almost the same degree. Bacterial alginate also inhibited the uptake of fluorescent-labelled zymosan and latex particles. Starch, at equivalent viscosity to the alginate, inhibited the uptake and degradation of radiolabelled nonviable P. aeruginosa to a greater extent, but Dextran T500 had no effect. This suggests that the viscous nature of alginate exerts a non-specific inhibitory effect on the uptake and subsequent degradation of phagocytosible particles., language=, type=