IN VITRO PHAGOCYTOSIS OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO A POSSIBLE ANTIPHAGOCYTIC FUNCTION OF COAGULASE.

Borchardt, Kenneth A. (Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, La.), and William A. Pierce, Jr. In vitro phagocytosis of Staphylococcus aureus with special reference to a possible antiphagocytic function of coagulase. J. Bacteriol. 87:311-315. 1964.-Rabbit antisera were prepared to Staphylococcus aureus strains of bacteriophage types 81 and 42D with vaccines consisting of washed, heat-killed cells grown in media which either did or did not support coagulase formation. Partially purified coagulases were prepared, and were used to produce rabbit anticoagulase antisera. In vitro phagocytic studies, with the two staphylococcal strains plus rabbit polymorphonuclear peritoneal exudate cells and the various types of rabbit antisera, did not yield evidence that coagulase per se contributes to staphylococcal resistance to either ingestion or intracellular killing. The role of coagulase, if any, in the virulence of these organisms for rabbits (and probably for man) must therefore be attributed to some other mechanism.