The Use of Phage to Study Causes of Loss of Viability of Escherichia coli in Aerosols

Abstract

This paper presents data to show that loss of viability of E. coli and phage in an aerosol was the consequence of at least three mechanisms. Phage-T7 was used and shown to be unstable when sprayed into air. When previously adsorbed to E. coll the aerosol stability of phage-T-7 appeared to be dependent upon its stage of development in its host. The host E. coli strain-B in an aerosol was itself subject to two stresses which operated through different mechanisms within the bacterium: a relative humidity stress having its locus of action such that colony formation and the production of phage-T-7 were both impaired; an air stress such that colony formation was impaired but that the bacterium was able to produce phage-T-7.