THE EFFECT OF CARBON DIOXIDE IN THE CULTIVATION OF THE MENINGOCOCCUS

The meningococcus is not a "microaerophile." It grows equally well in atmospheres containing from 15 to 40 per cent oxygen. If small amounts of carbon dioxide affect the growth of the meningococcus on an artificial medium it is by changing the reaction of the medium, not by slightly reducing the oxygen tension of the surrounding air. The fallibility of titrating the total acidity of a medium is again clearly demonstrated. A reaction favorable to the meningococcus cannot be determined from the total titratable acidity but depends solely upon the hydrogen ion concentration of the medium. The optimum for the meningococcus is approximately at pH 7.4. The value of a moist chamber in the cultivation of the meningococcus is shown by unusually luxuriant growth when other conditions are also favorable.