ABSCESS-FORMING FACTOR(S) PRODUCED BY STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS I

Abstract

Lam, Gow T. (Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pa.), Francis J. Sweeney, Jr., Charlotte M. Witmer, and Robert I. Wise . Abscess-forming factor(s) produced by Staphylococcus aureus . I. Collodion bag implantation technique. J. Bacteriol. 86: 611–615. 1963.—A collodion bag with a pore size sufficiently large to permit the diffusion of the staphylococcal extracellular products, but small enough to retain bacterial cells, was developed from a mixture of collodion and flexible collodion. These collodion bags were filled with various staphylococcal components and bacterial cells, and then implanted for 5 days into the peritoneal cavities of Swiss albino mice and four strains of inbred mice. It was found that live organisms, cell wall, and extracellular products promote an abscesslike formation around the collodion bags. The bags were surrounded with a thick layer of fibrous tissue and infiltrated with leukocytes. The exudate was free from bacterial cells. In contrast, no encapsulation occurred when the bags were filled with sterile culture medium, saline, or extracellular products which were free from coagulase after filtration through a Millipore filter.