<原著>代謝活性, 無細胞培養液を用いての鼠ライ菌培養の試み

Abstract

Since all trials hitherto done to obtain a macroscopic growth of Mycobacterium lepraemurium or M. leprae in cell-free media have been unsuccessful, many researchers seem to admit that these bacteria inherently lack the ability to grow in such media. The author assumed that if cell homogenate or filtrate which might maintain the intracellular metabolic activities of the host were given to the culture medium throughout the cultivation of rat leprosy bacilli, macroscopic growth of the organisms could be expected. The method of cultivation is as follows : (1) the rat leprosy bacilli adsorbed onto silicone-coated slides were put into the cell-free medium which contained freshly-prepared host cell filtrates, (2) the slides were taken out of the medium on the next day and put into new medium of the same composition; this procedure was continued 6 times a week and the growth of the bacilli was checked macroscopically and with magnifying lens and photographed every 4 weeks. After 20 weeks of incubation, a granular patch visible with magnifying lens appeared on the same area as the inoculum had been applied. After about 30 weeks of incubation the patch became ivory white and was visible with the naked eye. The organisms in the patch did not grow on ordinary media such as brain heart infusion agar, Lowenstein egg, or Kirchner's liquid medium. However, these organisms grew on the silicone-coated slides, again making an ivory white patch after 30 weeks of incubation.