Use of a Glucose Bismuth Sulphite Iron Medium for the Isolation of B. typhosus and B. proteus

Abstract

1. The development and use of a medium which has selective properties for the growth of B. typhosus and B. proteus is described.2. The principle of the method rests (1) on the positive property of the B. typhosus of being able to reduce a sulphite to a sulphide in the presence of glucose, (2) on the inhibitory action on the growth of B. coli of a bismuth sulphite in the presence of a certain excess of sodium sulphite.3. The media finally developed are made in the following way:A. To 100 c.c. of a melted 3 per cent. nutrient agar are added 5 c.c. of a 20 per cent. solution of glucose, 10 c.c. of a 20 per cent. solution of sodium sulphite (anhydrous), 5 c.c. of a standard bismuth solution. After boiling for two minutes an addition is made of 1 grm. of exsiccated sodium phosphate and 1 c.c. of an 8 per cent. solution of ferrous sulphate crystals.Medium B is the same as above with the addition of 0·5 c.c. of a 1 per cent. watery solution of brilliant green. The standard liquor bismuthi is prepared by mixing 60 grm. bismuth citrate with 50 c.c. of distilled water and then with 20 c.c. liq. ammonii sp. gr. 0·880 and finally making the volume up to 500 c.c. with distilled water.4. On these media the B. typhosus grows readily and forms flat blackdry surface colonies. B. proteus grows on the medium in a non-spreading fashion but does not form black colonies. B. coli either fails to grow or after a period of inhibition forms brown sticky raised colonies.5. Bismuth media were used in the examination of 31 enteric stools and in 30 instances the infecting microorganism was successfully isolated. Single examinations only were made and the material was usually 24 to 48 hours old at the time of examination.6. Emulsions of enteric stools which as shown by the usual media contained only a dozen or so of typhoid bacilli were found by our bismuth media actually to contain several thousand.7. The isolation from a case of typhoid fever of a proteus X 19 strain is recored.8. As regards its growth on bismuth sulphite media B. paratyphosus B behaves more like a reducing B. coli than a B. typhosus culture. For the isolation of B. paratyphosus B a lactose bile salt brilliant green medium is described.