Abstract
I wish at this time to correct a mis-statement regarding the fermentative power of B. histolyticus that appeared in my 1922 paper, 3 in which I recorded acid and gas production in glucose and uncritically accepted the records of Henry 4 and the British Medical Research Committee 5 of fermentation of glucose, levulose and maltose, which were based, like my own, on the study of a single strain. My own result may have been due to an undetected contamination. At any rate, Weinberg and Seguin 6 , Kendall, Day and Walker 7 and Kahn 8 were inclined to deny fermentation of sugars, and a more critical study of our five strains shows clearly that they ferment neither glucose, levulose, maltose, lactose, saccharose, salicin, glycerol nor inulin. That is, there is neither increase of hydrogen ion concentration nor considerable gas production.
B. histolyticus is thus the third sporulating anaerobe failing to derive its carbon from any of the commonly tested carbohydrates, glucosides or alcohols, the other two being B. tetani and B. putrificus.
The following table summarizes the outstanding differences between these three non-fermentative species of sporulating anaerobes:
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.