Of the many organisms isolated from patients with non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) and post-gonococcal urethritis (PGU), mycoplasmas have received considerable attention. Recovery of mycoplasmas from urethral discharge in males was first reported by Smith (1942). Large-colony mycoplasmas, particularly Mycoplasma hominis, have been isolated frequently from cases of NGU. Studies investigating the role of M. hominis in NGU have indicated that it is probably associated with sexual promiscuity rather than disease (Hayflick and Chanock, 1965; Taylor-Robinson, Addey, Hare, and Dunlop, 1969). In contrast, the role of T-strain mycoplasmas in NGU and PGU is unclear.Several investigators have reported an association between T-strain mycoplasmas and NGU (Shepard, 1959; Ford, Rasmussen, and Minken, 1962; Ford, and Du Vernet, 1966; Csonka, Williams, and Corse, 1966;Jansson, Lassus, Stubb, and Tuuri, 1971); others have failed to detect such an association (Ingham, MacFarlane, Hale, Selkon, and Codd, 1966;Black and Rasmussen, 1968; Hare, Dunlop, and Taylor-Robinson, 1969;Fowler and Leeming, 1969;Haas, Dorfman, and Sacks, 1971 glucose with thallium pH 70; (4) Arginine broth-1 per cent. arginine with thallium pH 7-0. Transport medium consisted of veal infusion broth with 0-5 per cent. bovine serum albumin. Such medium was found to be at least as satisfactory as mycoplasma medium for storage of mycoplasmas at 0-4°C. M. hominis and T-strain mycoplasmas stored in transport medium at 4°C. retained full titre for at least 48 hrs.
