Nutrition of the Propionic Acid Bacteria

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Abstract
Studies were carried out with Propionibacterium rubrum, P. peterssonii, P. thonii, P. zeae, P. pentosaceum, P. shermanii, and P. jreudenreichii.[long dash]Amino acids are beneficial but not essential to the propionic acid bacteria. Certain cultures grow with difficulty in their absence, others thrive. Riboflavin (0.05 [gamma] per cc.) stimulates growth in (NH4)2SO4 medium but can be dispensed with by most cultures. Vitamin B1 is an effective stimulant in (NH4)2SO4 medium but some cultures can be "trained" to grow vigorously without it. Ether extract of yeast extract is essential for all cultures. It is not replaced by a mixture of nicotinic acid, vitamin B1, pimelic acid, uracil, B-alanine and pantothentic acid. The nutritional requirements of the propionic acid bacteria are variable, probably depending upon the ability of the culture to synthesize essential substances at the time tested.