[Enzyme activity of induced auxotrophic mutants of El Tor Vibrio cholerae]

Vibrio cholerae induced auxotrophic variants nonfermenting several carbohydrates simultaneously have been obtained for the first time. Eltor vibrio clones have been selected, referred to Heuberg's groups V and VI by their enzymic activities. The findings of the present study evidence that, when isolating Eltor vibrio strains negative towards differential carbohydrates, in case of a positive agglutination test, the incubation period should be prolonged to 3 days. The principal differential diagnostic test for this species, when cholera is bacteriologically diagnosed, should be a positive volumic agglutination test with species- and variant-specific sera, irrespective of Heuberg's group.