A separation of staphylococci and micrococci based on serological reactivity with antiserum specific for polyglycerophosphate.

A serological reaction with the antiserum against heterophile polyglycerophosphate (PGP) was evaluated for genus level differentiation among strains of Staphylococcus and Micrococcus-Sarcina spp.. Hot saline extracts from whole cells of Staphylococcus spp. strongly reacted with the PGP antiserum, whereas those of Micrococcus-Sarcina spp. did not. Likewise, phenol-water extracts from whole cells of Micrococcus-Sarcina spp. were not reactive with the PGP antiserum, although the extracts of staphylococcal cells again gave a strong reaction with the antiserum. This study indicates that extracts from Micrococcus-Sarcina spp. have no antigen reactive with the PGP antiserum and can thus be differentiated from extracts of Staphylococcus spp. which react strongly with the PGP antiserum.