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Abstract
SUMMARY
A preliminary examination has been made of the effects of salts of heavy metals on bacterial adherence. 3H-thymidine labelled strains of Enterobacteriaceae isolated from sputa were incubated with human buccal cells and metallic salts. 10−4 m zinc or iron salts significantly increased adherence of Enterobacteriaceae to human buccal cells in an in-vitro system. These effects were not altered by variation of the buffer system used, and seem dependent upon interactions between metals and bacteria that occur within about 5 minutes.
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© J. MED. MICROBIOL. 1980