Helically Coiled Micro-organism from Caecum Contents of the Rat

Abstract

IN the course of investigations on the intestinal flora of white rats an unusual helically coiled organism was observed on several occasions in gram-stained smears of the caecum contents (Fig. 1). The organism remained viable when 10 per cent w/v suspensions of caecum contents in Todd–Hewitt broth were heated at 80° C for 5 min in sealed ampoules and afterwards sub-cultured anaerobically under alkaline pyrogallol seals in Todd–Hewitt broth containing 25 µg per ml. of neomycin sulphate. The resulting culture, which contained a number of other micro-organisms in addition to the coiled form, was inoculated into germ-free rats of the Swedish strain and the coiled form was again observed in stained smears of both faeces and caecum contents.