Effect of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide on the viability of Serratia marcescens.

Campbell, Jack E. (University of California, Berkeley), and R. L. Dimmick. Effect of 3% hydrogen peroxide on the viability of Serratia marcescens. J. Bacteriol. 91:925-929. 1966.-Populations of Serratia marcescens were exposed to 3% H(2)O(2) at temperatures from 0 to 20 C. The reaction appeared to follow an Arrhenius plot, but variable numbers of diminutive colonies were found after cell numbers started to decrease. Colony numbers varied on different sampling media and increased when additional incubation was imposed. The overall reaction was sensitive to age of culture, and growth capabilities of treated samples varied with time of treatment, especially during times when no loss of viability was noted. Catalase activity per cell did not correlate with changes in sensitivity; iron added to growth medium increased catalase activity and decreased sensitivity, but not in the same manner. Although the fundamental reaction is presumably molecular in nature, present methods of viability assay measure more than single events and are not suitable for these studies.