METABOLISM AND THE CHEMICAL NATURE OF STREPTOMYCES

Although considerable information has accumulated concerning the dis-tribution of actinomycetes in nature and their cultural characteristics, compar-atively little is known of the chemical composition of their mycelium, their physiology, and their nutrient requirements. With the growing importance of actinomycetes as producers of antibiotic substances, it seemed desirable to gain some information concerning the composition of their cells and the chemical changes that they bring about in the composition of the medium. Certain pertinent data obtained in the study of the streptomycin-producing organism, Streptomyces griseus, may therefore be of interest. Since the organism is commonly grown either in stationary cultures or in a submerged and agitated state, a comparison was first made of the rate of cell synthesis of the organism, the consumption of some of the nutrients, and the degradation of certain of the organic constituents in the medium under these two cultural conditions. Nutrient broth containing 5 g peptone, 5 g meat extract, 10 g glucose, and 5