A Study of Slime-Positive Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci

Date of Graduation

Fall 1986

Degree

Master of Science in Biology

Department

Biology

Committee Chair

Richard Myers

Abstract

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) have been involved in medical device and catheter-associated sepsis. Extracellular slime produced by CNS has been implicated as an important factor of pathogenicity. The current investigation involved perfection of a technique for separating slime from the bacterial cell and concentration of it. S. epidermidis was determined in a virulence study to be avirulent to Swiss webster mice with no implanted medical device. Humoral immunity to CNS slime was studied and it was found that New Zealand white rabbits were unable to mount an antibody response to slime. A slime quantitation procedure was developed that utilizes spectroscopy. The effect of glucose concentration was evaluated, and it was determined that slime-positive CNS produced more slime in a glucose supplemented medium than did slime-negative organisms. Maxium slime production occurred in media containing 0.1 to 0.8 percent glucose. Adherence of the slime film to only one-half of the growth culture tube was noted. Finally, a study of clindamycin as a mediator of slime production indicated that clindamycin was not involved at the concentrations utilized.

Subject Categories

Biology

Copyright

© Rita Marie Heuertz

Citation-only

Dissertation/Thesis

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