Abstract
Summary
(1) Attempts to demonstrate an agent in beta hemolytic streptococci which would accelerate the normal rate of capsular disintegration were unsuccessful. (2) Of various chemical agents tested, the following ions were ineffective in inhibiting this disintegration: Lead, cadmium, barium, manganese, lithium, silver, mercury, arsenite, iodide, bromide, periodate, cyanide and oxalate. (3) The following agents were found to retard decapsulation: Fluoride, azide, arsenate, citrate, and formaldehyde. The effect of fluoride was lost upon the addition of magnesium or calcium ions. (4) Fluoride did not inhibit the decapsulating action of streptococcal hyaluronidase. (5) The effect of temperature was found to be compatible with the assumption of a hypothetical enzyme system causing decapsulation.
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