Thermal injury and recovery of Streptococcus faecalis

Abstract

Exposure of Streptococcus faecalis R57 to sublethal heating produced a temporary change in the salt tolerance and growth of the organism. After sublethal heat treatment at 60 C for 15 min, greater than 99.0% of the viable population was unable to reproduce on media containing 6% NaCl. In addition, the heated cells displayed a sensitivity to incubation temperature, pH, and 0.01% methylene blue. When the injured cells were placed in a synthetic medium, recovery occurred at a much slower rate than in a complex medium. However, both media supported comparable growth of the uninjured organism. Various media used for the enrichment of streptococci also provided a suitable environment for the recovery of the injured cells. Generally, as more selective agents were present in the medium, the rates of recovery decreased. Metabolic inhibitor studies with chloramphenicol, penicillin, and actinomycin D substantiated the fact that the process involved was recovery and not growth, and that this recovery was linked to ribonucleic acid synthesis.