Abstract
The hemolytic activity of staphylococcal alpha-toxin is inhibited by an N-acetylglucosamine-containing ganglioside (GlcNAc-ganglioside) but not by any of the related glycolipids. The GlcNAc-ganglioside also is precipitated with the toxin by a gel-diffusion technique. It is postulated that GlcNAc-ganglioside may be the membrane receptor for the alpha-toxin.