106 BACTERIA AS ANTAGONISTS 



stance could be demonstrated} the lactic acid itself had only a limited 

 effect (9). Korolev (528) has shown that when a yellow sarcina was 

 added to solid media a stimulating effect was exerted on the growth of 

 species of Brucella {Br. melitensisj Br. abortus, Br. suis)-, in liquid 

 media, however, the activities of these species were repressed, the sar- 

 cina thus acting as an antagonist. A white staphylococcus exerted an an- 

 tagonistic action on Brucella species both in liquid and on solid media. 



Certain acid-producing aerobes were found capable of inhibiting toxin 

 production by Clostridium hotulinum in glucose but not in noncarbo- 

 hydrate media (373). Since acid itself cannot bring about this effect, 

 Holman (440) suggested that the acid must be active in a nascent state. 

 A mixture of a Clostridium sforogenes and CI. Botulinum also inter- 

 fered with the development of the toxin j it was even thought possible 

 that the first anaerobe might cause the disappearance of toxin already 

 produced (164, 165). S. aureus, E. coU, P. vulgaris, and other bac- 

 teria permitted the growth of CI. hotulinum in aerobic cultures, accom- 

 panied by toxin production (290). However, Streptococcus thermofhi- 

 lus inhibited the growth of CI. hotulinum, the toxin of the latter being 

 gradually destroyed (493). 



Passini (708) claimed that Bacillus futrificus verrucosus destroyed 

 M. tuberculosis in nine days. The effect of other anaerobes on the sur- 

 vival of anthrax spores in dead animals has been extensively studied 

 (440). Novy (688) reported that the injection into guinea pigs of P. 

 vulgaris and Clostridium oedem^atiens resulted in rapid death of the 

 animals and extensive growth of the anaerobe in the animal bodies; 

 however, the simultaneous inoculation of CI. sforogenes and P. vul- 

 garis did not result in putrid lesions. According to Barrieu {'^6), the 

 presence of P. vulgaris and certain nonpathogenic spore-bearing aerobes 

 in wounds favors, through their proteolytic activity, the virulence of 

 pathogenic bacteria. Pringsheim (738) grew CI. welchii with Alka- 

 ligenes fecalis for ten generations on agar slants and could easily detect 

 in the growth of the latter the opaque colonies of the anaerobe. A lique- 

 fying sarcina allowed CI. welchii and CI. butyricum to grow in open 

 tubes. Many war-wound infections were believed (985) to be due to an 

 association of P. vulgaris with anaerobes, since the former increased the 

 virulence of CI. ferjringens and others. 



