Rod-shaped Particles in Saprospira

Abstract

FIVE strains of Saprospira grandis Gross, an apochlorotic cyanophyte or flexibacterium, have been isolated in pure culture from several marine littoral habitats around the United States¹. In all strains the filaments tend to fragment and the individual cells to lyse at the end of the growing period. For example, a 10-ml. culture in a 50-ml. flask, grown in a sea-water medium containing 5 g/l. tryptone and 5 g/l. yeast extract (Difco) and shaken gently but constantly at 30°, forms within 1–2 days after inoculation a dense peach-coloured suspension with a satiny sheen; under the microscope it is seen to be full of helical filaments. A day or two later the sheen disappears, the colour becomes duller, and no microscopically intact or viable cells remain.