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Clostridium botulinum in the lakes and waterways of London

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

G. R. Smith  and
Caroline J. Moryson
G. R. Smith
Affiliation:
Nuffield Institute of Comparative Medicine, The Zoological Society of London, Regent/s Park, London NW 1
Caroline J. Moryson
Affiliation:
Nuffield Institute of Comparative Medicine, The Zoological Society of London, Regent/s Park, London NW 1
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Mud samples collected during 1974 from a large proportion of the lakes and waterways of London were examined for Clostridium botulinum. Of 69 such sites, 50 (72·5%) contained at least one type of the organism. Of the 50 positive sites, 31, 12, 1 and 10 contained, respectively, types B, C, D and E. Most of the demonstrations of type B required trypsinization of culture filtrates. An examination of 7 lakes in Edinburgh, made for the purpose of comparison, showed that 4 contained type B and one type C.

An analysis of the results gave quantitative information on the value of (1) resampling apparently negative lakes, (2) the use of both heated and unheated culture inocula, and (3) trypsinization of culture filtrates.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Hygiene , Volume 75 , Issue 3 , December 1975 , pp. 371 - 379
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1975

References

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