[Combined methods of dialysis, cooked meat medium enrichment and laboratory animal toxicity for screening Clostridium botulinum spores in honey and infant food].

One hundred and fifty two samples of honey were purchased from apiaries and markets in Taiwan, meanwhile fifty samples of infant food including powders of infant milk, wheat, rice and commercial mixed cereals, as well as juice had been bought from supermarkets in Taipei city from July 1988 through April 1989. The samples were used for detecting the presence of Clostridium botulinum spores. Honey samples were prepared by dialysis to obtain the bacterial spores; however, infant food had been innoculated directly into the cooked meat medium. The suspicious isolated colonies were identified by Vitek automatic microbial identification system. The supernatants of cooked meat medium enrichment were performed for typing botulinum toxins via the laboratory animal toxicity test. The results showed that two samples of honey contained the spores of C. botulinum type B, but none in samples of infant food. The specific response of clinical signs in mice, after being administered the supernatant of suspected cultural broth, were also observed and described in this article.