AMINO ACID COMPOSITION OF THE HETEROTHALLIC ASCOMYCETE, GELA3INOSPORA AUTOSTEIRA By Daniel Paul Roman A THESIS Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Bacteriology and Public Health 1952 SMfcM&AAodl A® Ah® 8®Im®X ®C Cto*®A®®A® d § n i g M U i O e lle e e 4 |p 1m 1% w « « ® i I f p l f o * Am pirtlrt fulfill— fir MtelA^M® %*%m mm A «f Ah® »|rt,fwirti H | » i of 000*0* or nxboflom lapirtaMl «f i M t a r t n l H r a M h A U i M— lAh t w lHt A A aa ACKNOWLEDGMENT The author wishes to express his sincere appreciation to Dr. W. L. Mallmann and to Dr. C. J. Alexopoulos for their assistance and guidance in conducting this investi­ gation, and to M r s . Sun for the single spore isolates used in the experiment. He also wishes to thank Doctors Wynd and Leucke for permitting the use of their laboratory facilities, and Miss Sarah VJade for her valuable assistance. t t W W t f t f HI •MHHt -Mr « TABLE OF CONTENTS PACE INTRODUCTION...................................................... 1 A . PREPARATION FOR MICROBIOLOGICAL ASSAY........................ 6 B . MICROBIOLOGICAL ASSAYS........................................ 8 DISCUSSION........................................................ 20 SUMMARY........................................................... 23 BIBLIOGRAPHY...................................................... 2h LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I. STOCK SOLUTIONS USED IN PREPARATION OF BASAL MEDIA........ 11 II. BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF METHIONINE AND CYSTINE......... 12 BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF GLYCINE, LYSINE, AND PROLINE 13 BASAL MEDIUM-FOR ASSAY OF LEUCINE, ISOLEUCINE, PHENYL­ ALANINE, AND VALINE..................................... lii BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF TRYPTOPHANS.................... 15 AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN A CALCULATED TO 16% NITROGEN. 16 III. IV. V. VI. VII. VIII . IX. AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN B CALCULATED TO 16£ NITROGEN. 17 AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN A CALCULATED TO PERCENT DRY WEIGHT................................................... 18 AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN B CALCULATED TO PERCENT DRY WEIGHT................................................... 19 INTRODUCTION 1 INTRODUCTION Only in comparatively recent years has it been possible to make accurate and relatively easy quantitative determinations of the amino acids present in proteins. With tools such as microbiological assays at their disposal, research workers have attempted to define more exactly the nature of the cell protein of microorganisms. However, the attempts to determine the constancy of the amino acid content of bacteria and fungi under a given set of conditions have led to the appearance of a number of confusing and conflicting reports in the literature. The first determination of amino acids in microorganisms dates back to the work of Abderhalden and Rona (l) in 1905. They isolated glycine, alanine, leucine, glutamic acid, and aspartic acid from Aspergillus niger irrespective of whether the nitrogen source in the growth media was potassium nitrate, glycine, or glutamic acid. This observation was supported by the work of Tamura (lit) in 1913 when he reported finding no significant difference in the amino acid composition of Mycobacterium laticola grown in nutrient broth, or as compared to the growth in a protein free medium consisting of mineral salts, ammonium lactate, asparagine, and glycerol. The findings of these and of other early workers have not been taken too seriously by present day researchers, since the methods avail­ able to them for the determination of amino acids were neither highly accurate nor specific. The introduction of more reliable quantitative methods has led several authors into conducting a more accurate and detailed investigation into microbial proteins. Camien, Sallej and Dunn (ii) reviewed the work of previous analysts and conducted their own investigation on four lactobacilli and on Escherichia coli grown on two different media. Using a microbiological assay method, they were unable to find a significant difference in the amino acid composition of an organism, and concluded that the amino acid composition of the cell protein is nearly constant for defatted cells cultured on synthetic media consisting of widely varied constituents. This more accurate determination strongly supported the findings advanced by previous con­ tributors . Stokes and Gunness (13) provided comprehensive quantitative data on several microorganisms including bacteria, yeasts, and molds by assaying acid or alkali hydrolyzed cell material microbiologically. These studies were limited to the ten so-called essential amino acids and deal with the influence of cultural conditions on the quantitative content of these ten amino acids. Cultivation of a fungus under identical conditions yielded reproducible amino acid contents, furnish­ ing evidence that the amino acid composition of an organism is, quali­ tatively and quantitatively, a stable and fixed characteristic property of the cell under fixed conditions of growth. By varying the growth conditions, quantitative differences greater than would be expected due to the inaccuracies of the method were noted. The evidence showed that the amino acid content of microorganisms was variable, and changed 3 with the nature of the medium, aeration conditions, and age of the cells. The findings of Freeland and Gale ( 6) were directly contradictory to those of Stokes and Gunness (13) and tended to confirm the previous conclusions as to constancy of the amino acid content of microorganisms. Analyzing for arginine, tyrosine, lysine, histidine, and glutamic acid by means of a manometric specific decarboxylase method they found the amino acid composition of the protein of Escherichia coli and Aerobacter aerogenes .to be unaffected by widely varying growth conditions. Further confirmation of the conclusions of other investigators that the amino acid composition of microorganisms was constant for any one medium and one set of growth conditions was furnished by Dunlop (5) in an investigation of the synthesis of amino acids by Escherichia coli. In a second series of experiments, he found little difference in the amino acid composition of the cells of E. coli when grown under widely varying cultural conditions. However, the results of the latter experi­ ments differed sufficiently from those of other investigators to suggest, to him, the possibility that the composition of the medium may affect the amino acid composition of the cells . A microbiological assay of the amino acid content of selected Mycobacteria, done by Boniece (3) f showed Quantitative differences in the amounts present. The organisms, Mycobacterium phlei and Myco­ bacterium avium, were grown on media differing mainly in the source of nitrogen. The results obtained indicated a variation in the amino acid 1* and protein content of each test organism in response to changes in the substrate nitrogen. Observations of the different cultural characteristics of the growth from singly isolated spores from a single ascus of Gelasinospora autostelra suggested the possibility that the chemical composition of the organism might not be the same for all the spores. This observation, coupled with the conflicting reports in the literature concerning the constancy of the amino acid composition of microorganisms led to the experiment presented in this thesis . The Ascomycete, Gelasino spora autosteira . was isolated and described by Alexopoulos and Sung (2) in 1950. On corn meal agar, the mycelium consists of rapidly growing hyphae of various thicknesses. The colony is colorless at first, but in about a week a brown color begins to develop over the entire colony. takes on a faint pink color. Aerial mycelium when present abundantly Conidia and spermatia are unknown in the sx^ecies. The species consists of two self-incomjatible strains, designated A and B . The cultures obtained from single ascospore isolations do not produce perithecia A cross between combinations of the same strain also fail to produce perithecia. Crosses of Strain A with Strain B develop perithecia along the line of contact between the two mycelia. The particular isolates used in this experiment formed perithecia when spores from Strain A, Nos. 1, 2, 5, and 6 were crossed with spores fron Strain 3^ Nos. 3, U, 7, and 8. 5 It was felt that the self-infertile strains might exhibit a vari­ ation in amino acid content which would parallel the strain differences or that differences in the cultural characteristics would manifest themselves as changes in the composition of the cell. The isolated ascospores were therefore, grown under identical conditions, and treated as nearly alike as possible throughout the experiment. The defatted, hydrolyzed cell material was assayed microbiologically for ten amino acids . PREPARATION for microbiological assay 6 A . PREPARATION FOR MICROBIOLOGICAL ASSAY The fungus selected for study was the Ascomycete, Gelasino sport autosteira. This organism is not known to produce conidia, and produces ascospores only after union with a different sex of the species. It was, therefore, possible to obtain a culture containing only vegetative hyphae. Single cell isolates of the eight spores from a mature ascus were germinated anc used as stock cultures in the experiment. The spores were numbered according to the order of their appearance in the ascus, and the sexual strain of each was determined. Spores numbered 1, 2, 5, 6 were of Strain A, and spores numbered 3, U, 7, 8 were of Strain B. Filtered corn meal infusion broth, with 0.5 percent yeast extract, and 0.2 percent dextrose added, was used to grow a sufficient quantity of mycelium for assay. The medium was dispensed into 2000 ml Erlerxneyer flasks, 300 ml per flask. Inoculum was from a i;8 hour culture grown on Difco corn meal agar plus the yeast extract and dextrose. Small discs were cut from the agar plates and floated on the surface of the broth. The flasks were incubated at room temperature for one week. The cultures were harvested at the end of the seven day incubationperiod . The mycelial mats were lifter, undamagec from the Erlermeyer flasks and dipped individually into distilled water to remove most of the adhering medium. The mycelia was then pooled in a liter beaker and washed several times with distilled water . The mats were then dried at 90 C . and subsequently finely ground for the following stages. 7 Fat extractions and nitrogen determinations were done on all iso­ lates . Fat was extracted on continuous Soxhlet extractors with ether for eight hours . Micro-Kjeldahl methods were used in the determination of nitrogen. MICROBIOLOGICAL ASSAYS 8 B. MICROBIOLOGICAL ASSAYS The dried defatted hyphae were prepared for assay by hydrolysis to liberate the constituent amino acids. Acid hydrolysates for the determination of all acids except tryptophane were prepared by autoclaving one gm samples with 25 ml of 6N hydrochloric acid at 15 lbs pressure for eight hours. The tryptophane digest was prepared by autoclaving 500 mg samples with 16 ml of I4N sodium hydroxide (9) . The samples were then neutralized and diluted to a final concentration of 10 mg of sample per milliliter of solution in volumetric flasks. JSach hydrolysate was assayed in duplicate at three levels of the standard curve. Preliminary assays were required to determine appro­ priate dilutions of the sample so that the values would fall on the nearly linear part of the standard curve. Levels of 1, 2, and 3 ml of the diluted sample were run in the final assay. was determined in triplicate at each level. The standard curve Increasing amounts of the standard solution of the amino acid in question were added to the series of tubes. Distilled water was added to all tubes to bring the volume of each up to five ml. Stock solutions of the amino acids, nitrogen bases, salts and vitamins were usea in the preparation of the basal medium. The composi­ tion of the basal medium and the organism usee for the assay are given in Tables II-V. The basal medium, minus the amino acid being assayed, was added to the standard and to the unknown solutions, five ml of 9 medium per tube. The tubes, 18 x 150 mm, were capped and autoclaved at 121 C for 10 minutes. The assay, as set up, was inoculated with the proper assay organism and incubated at 37 C for 72 hours. The assay organisms, Lactobacjlius arabinosus 17-5 (ATCC 18lL|.) , and Leuconostoc mesenteroides P-60 (ATCC 80U2), were carried as stab cultures on a solid medium. cultures were prepared weekly. Fresh stock To prepare the organism as inoculum, broth subcultures were incubated for 12-18 hours, centrifuged, washed once with saline, and resuspended in saline. The saline suspension of the organism was added to the assa^ t\ibes by means of a burette, one drop of culture per tube. The broth subcultures were carried on a medium of the following composition. Bacto peptone Yeast extract Na acetate (anhyd.) Gluco se k 3hpo4 kh2po 4 MgS04 .7H0H NaCl F eS04 .7H0H MnS04 .HOH 0.8 % 0.1 0.1 1.0 0.05 o .05 0.02 0.001 0.001 0 .001 Stock cultures were carried on a medium of the same composition plus one percent agar. After incubation the relative amounts of acid produced were de­ termined . The contents of the tubes were rinsed into beakers with distilled water and titrated to pH 7.0 electrometrically using N/10 sodium hydroxide. Plotting milliliters of sodium hydroxide as ordinates and micrograms of the standard amino acid as abscissas the standard 10 curve was drawn. The amino acid content of the samples was determined by averaging the results obtained from each hydrolysate and at each level of the standard curve. The amounts of amino acids present were calculated to 16 percent nitrogen and recorded in Tables VI and VII. Recalculated to percent of dry weight the values are presented in Tables VIII and IX. 11 TABLE I STOCK SOLUTIONS USED IN PREPARATION OF BASAL MEDIA Solution H^O jj treated peptone Casein Hydrolyr,ate Cone. mg/ml 50 100 DL- - Alanine 10 L(/) Arginine. HC1 10 L-Asparagine 20 L(-)-Cystine 5 L(/)-Glutamic Acid 20 Glycine 10 L(/0 -Histidine .HC1 .HOH 10 Solution Salts A KaHFO* KHsjPO* Salts B Mg S04 .7HOH FeSD4 .7HOH MnSO* .LtHOH NaCl Xanthine 5 10 DL-Me thio nine 10 Para-Amino-Benzoic-Acid DL-Phenylalanine 10 Biotin L( -) -Pro line 10 Folic Acid DL -Serine 10 DL-Threonine 10 DL -T ryp to p ilane 10 L( -) -Tyro sine 10 DL-Valine 10 5 UO 2 2 2 1 1 1 LC/^-Iysine .HC1 .HOH DL-Leucine 10 100 100 Adenine, Guanine, Uracil Uracil Adenine sulfate.2H0H Guanine H C 1 .2H0H Vitamin Solution Thiamin Hydrochloride Pyridoxine Hydrocliloride DL-Calcium Pentothenate Riboflavin Nicotinic Acid DL-Isoleucine Cone. mg/ml 50 100 50 50 100 10 0.5 100 It TABLE II BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF METHIONINE AND CYSTINE (10) MEDIUM (PER 500 ML) Component wt. H a0 a treated peptone 7.5 L (-)-Cystine 100 DL-Methionine Component wt. gm NaCl 10 mg Adenine Sulfate.2H0H 10 100 Guanine,HC1.2H0H 10 DL-T ryp t op hane 100 Uracil 10 L( -)-Tyrosine 100 Thiamine.HC1 1.0 Glucose 20 Pyridoxine.HC1 2.0 Na acetate (anhyd.) 12 DL-Ca Pantothenate 2.0 NH4C1 6 Riboflavin 2.0 KHsPCU 500 Nicotinic Acid 2.0 k 3hpo4 500 PABA 0.01 MgS04 .7H0H 200 Biotin 0.005 FeS04 .7H0H 10 Folic Acid 0.0015 MnS04 .liHOH 10 gm mg Assay organism! pH 6.9-7 .O mg Leuconostoc mesenteroides P-60 (ATCC 801*2) 13 TABLE III BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF GLYCINE, LYSINE, AND PROLINE (ll) MEDIUM (PER 500 ML) Component wt. DL- 200 -Alanine mg Component Wt. Na acetate (anhyd.) 20 gm L(/) -Arginine .HC1 100 KHaP04 500 mg L-Asparagine 200 k3hpo4 500 L( -)Cystine 200 MgS04 .7H0H 200 L(/)-Glutamic Acid hoo FeS04 .7HOH 10 Glycine 100 MnS04 .IjHOH 10 L(/) -Histidine.HC1 .HOH 100 NaCl 10 DL-Isoleucine 200 Adenine Sulfate.2H0H 10 DL-Leucine 200 Guanine .HC1.2H0H 10 L(/) -Lysine .HC1 .HOK 200 Uracil 10 DL-Methionine 200 Xanthine 10 DL-Phe nylalanine 100 Thiamine .HC1 0.05 L(-)-Proline 50 Pyridoxine .HC1 1.0 DL-Serine 200 DL-Ca Pantothenate 0.50 DL-Threonine 200 Riboflavin 0.50 DL-Trypto phane 100 Nicotinic Acid 1.0 L( -) -Tyro sine 100 PA3A 0.10 DL-Valine 200 Biotin 0.001 Glucose 20 Folic Acid 0.01 Assay Organismt pH 6.8-7.0 gm Leuconostoc mesenteroides P6© (ATCC 801*2) TABLE IV BASAL MEDIUM FOR ASSAY OF LEUCINE. ISOLEUCINE,* PHENYLALANINE, AND VALINE* (12) MEDIUM (PER 500 ML) Component Wt. DL- 200 -Alanine mg Component Wt. Na acetate (anhyd.) 20 gm L(/) -Arginine .HC1 50 KHaPO* 500 mg L-Asparagine 200 KaHP04 500 L(-) -Cystine 100 MgS04 .7HOH 200 L(/)-Glutamic Acid i|00 FeS04 .7HOK 10 Glycine 20 MnSO*.UHOH 10 L(/)-Histidine .HC1 .HOH 50 NaCl 10 DL-Isoleucine 200 Adenine Sulfate .2H0H 10 DL-Leucine 200 Guanine .HC1.2H0H 10 L(/)Lysine .HC1 .HOH 200 Uracil 10 DL-Methionine 100 Xanthine 10 DL-Phenylalanine 100 Tliiamine .HC1 0.50 L( -)-Proline 50 Pyridoxine JIC1 1.0 DL-Serine 50 DL-Ca Pantothenate 0.50 DL-Threonine 200 Riboflavin 0.50 DL-Tryptophane 50 Nicotinic Acid 1.0 L-Tyro sine 50 PABA 0.10 DL-Valine 200 Biotin 0.001 Glucose 20 Folic Acid 0.01 Assay Organism* gm Lactobacillus arabinosus 17—5 (ATCC 181U) pH 6.6-6.8 * plus 10 ml tomato eluate (8) TABLBV BASAL MEDIUM FOB ASSAY CT TRYPTOPHANE (7) MEDIUM (F8E $00 ML) t s 1 0 Wt. Component wt. Casein hydrolysate 5.0 m Ad'mine sulfate .2HCH IO L(-)-Cystine 200 mg Quanine 10 Glucose 20 gm Uracil 10 Na acetate (anhyd.) 20 Thiamine .HC1 0.10 KH»P04 500 Pyridoxine .HC1 0.10 500 DL-Ca Pantothenate 0.10 Mg304 .7HOH 200 Riboflavin 2.0 FeS04 .7H0H 10 Nicotinic Acid 0.140 MnS04 .I4HOH 10 PABA 0.10 NaCl 10 Biotin 0.0002 k ^ fo4 Assay Organism* mg mg Lactobacillus arabinosus 17“5 (ATCC I 8II4) 16 TABLE VI AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN A CALCULATED TO 16$ NITROGEN Spore Number Component Nitrogen 1 2 5 6 6 .U3 6.57 n .87 6.69 UO .21 U1.06 30.US U3 .05 Cystine 0 ,U8 0.h9 0.U7 0.U6 Glyc ine 3.6 3.8 3.3 3.6 Isoleucine U.9 U.9 U.8 U.8 Leucine 6.7 0.7 6.1 6.U 7.0 6.U Protein (Nx6.25) Lye5ne Methionine 1.8 1.9 1.8 1.9 Phenylalanine 3.6 3.7 3.U 3.8 Proline U .2 U.3 U.3 U.2 Tryptophane 0 .U5 O.UU 0.36 o.U5 Valine 6.0 6.1 5.9 5.6 17 TABLE VII AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN B CALCULATED TO NITROGEN Spore Number Component Nitrogen 3 8 k 7.20 7.16 5.30 7.07 US .00 UU .75 33.13 Mi .19 Cystine o.hh o.US 0.U6 o.Mi Glycine 3.8 3.7 3.3 3.5 Isoleucine k.U U.U U .5 U.6 Leucine 6.6 6.1 6.1 6.1 Lysine 6.3 6.1 6.2 6.3 Methionine 1.9 1.8 1.8 1.6 Phenylalanlne 3.5 3.3 3.U 3.7 Proline k.O U.o U.h U.l Tryptophane o.Ui 0.3c 0.36 o.Ui Valine 5.8 5.6 5.5 5.5 Protein (Nxo.25) 18 TABLE VIII AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN A CALCULATED TO PERCENT DRY WEIGHT Component 1 Spore Number 2 5 6 Nitrogen 6.1*3 6.57 U.87 6.89 Cystine 0.19 0.20 0.15 0.20 Glycine 1.5 1.6 1.0 1.6 Isoleucine 2.0 2 .0 1.5 2.1 Leucine 2.7 2.7 1.9 2.8 Lysine 2.5 2.7 1.8 2.8 Methionine 0.7U 0.76 0.5U 0.82 Pi;enylalanine l.U 1.5 1.0 1.6 Proline 1.7 1.8 1.3 1.6 Tryptophane o.ie 0.18 0.11 0.19 Valine 2.U 2.5 1.6 2.1* 19 TABLE IX AMINO ACID CONTENT OF STRAIN B CALCULATED TO PERCENT DRY WEIGHT Component 3 Spore Number L 7 8 Nitrogen 7.20 7.16 5.30 7.07 Cystine 0.20 0.20 0.15 0.19 Glycine 1.7 1.7 l.i 1.5 Isoleucine 2.0 2.0 1.5 2.0 Leucine 3.0 2.7 2.0 2.7 Lysine 2.9 2.7 2.0 2.8 Methionine o.ei 0.76 0.56 0.81 Phenylalanine 1.6 1.5 1.2 1.6 Proline 1.8 1.8 1.5 1.8 Tryptophane 0.19 0.17 0.12 0.18 Valine 2.6 2.5 1.8 2.5 DISCUSSION 20 DISCUSSION The data obtained in the experiment, calculated to percent protein, support the statements of previous investigators that the same organism grown under the same conditions will have the same amino acid content. Considering the value of each spore as a separate determination of the same organism, the average value of the amino acid content falls within the experimental error of the microbiological assay method. This is also true when a mean value is determined for the four spores of each strain, A and B. Strain A has a slightly higher content of each amino acid, with the exception of glycine, than has Strain B. The differences between the two strains are not significant, however. Those spores which have a low nitrogen content, as would be ex­ pected, also have a low amino acid content. The lowered nitrogen content is closely paralleled by the lowered content of the amino acids so that the ratio of the constituent amino acids to protein is essentially the same. This can be more readily noted when the amino acid content is expressed as percent of the dry weight of defatted mycelium. Recalculated to percent dry weight the similarity in amino acid content is no longer obvious. Although there is again no significant difference between the average values of the two self infertile strains of the organism, differences among the individual spores are apparent. All spores but numbers 5 and 7 are of essentially the same composition. These spores with their very low nitrogen content, differ widely from 21 the others. Spore 7 ranges from approximately a 20 percent lower proline content to a 30 percent deficit in glycine. The mycelia from the fifth spore are still lower, ranging from 25 percent lower in cystine to 39 percent lower in tryptophane than the average figures for the other spores, 5 and 7 being excluded from the average. The low content of the amino acids cannot be ascribed to differences in the strain. Since there are no significant differences between spores 1, 2, and 6 of Strain A and spores 3* U, and 8 of Strain B, the variance between spores 5 and 7 must be due to another factor beside strain difference. The slow rate of growth may offer a partial explanation of the low nitrogen and amino acid content of the spores. At the end of the 7 day incubation period the growth was very scant covering less than one-third of the diameter of the culture flask. The mycelial mats exhibited all the normal, cultural, and morphological characteristics as the growth from the other spores except for rate of growth. All other cultures completely covered the surface of the corn meal infusion broth in 5 days or less. The faster growing cultures are typical of the species, and were also typical of spores 5 and 7 upon primary isolation. Dissociation of these spores occurred to such an extent, however, that the colonies were no longer typical. In the process of dissociation the organism may have lost some of its ability to metabolize the nitrogenous constituents of the medium resulting in a lower protein content. A lack of certain enzymes which would result in the failure to synthesize cellular proteins would be a 22 two way mechanism leading to the observed discrepancies. The intra­ cellular enzymes of the organism add to the sum total of amino acids present, and their lack would contribute to an unknown, and probably very small, portion of the deficiencies. The accompanying lessening of nitrogen metabolism would account for a much larger fraction. SUMMARY 2 SUMMARY 1. No changes in the amino acid composition of cellular proteins are noted in the mycelium from singly isolated ascospores when calcu­ lated to percent protein. 2. Significant quantitative differences exist in the amino acid and protein content of the growth from singly isolated ascospores of Gelasinospora autosteira when expressed as percent of dry weight. BIBLIOGRAPHY 2k BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Abderhalden, E., and Rona, P. Die zusammensetzung des "Eiweiss** von Aspergillus niger bei versehiedener stickstoff-quelle. Z. Physiol. Chem. U6« 179 (1905) 2. Alexopoulos, C. J., and Sung, S. H. Mycologia 723 (1950). A new species of Gelasinospora. 3. Boniece, W. S. Studies of the nitrogen metabolism of selected mycobacteria. Thesis, Mich. State Coll. (1950). U. Camien, N. N., Salle, A. J., and Dunn, M. S. Investigations of amino acids, peptides, and proteins XXXII. Percentages of some amino acids in lactobacilli. Arch. Biochem. 8t 67 (19^5). 5. Dunlop, S. G. The synthesis of amino acids by Escherichia coli in pure culture . J . B a c t . 58* 1*57 (19^9/ . 6. Freeland, J. C., and Gale, E. F. certain bacteria and yeast. The amino acid composition of Biochem. J. Ul* 135 (19U7). 7. Krehl, W. A., Strong, F. M., and Elvehjem, C. A. Determination of nicotinic acid. Ind. Eng. Chem. (anal, ed.) l£* U71 (1914-3). 8. Kuiken, K. A., Norman, W . H., Lyman, C. M., Hale, F., and Blotter, L. The microbiological determination of amino acids I* Valine, leucine, and isoleucine. J. Biol. Chem. 151* 615 (19^3) 9. Kuiken, K. A., Lyman, C. M., ana Hale, F. Factors which influence the stability of tryptophane during the hydrolysis of proteins in alkaline solution. J. Biol. Chem. 171* 551 (19U7). 10. Lyman, C. M., Moseley, 0., Butler, B., Wood, S., and Hale, F. The microbiological determination of amino acids III. Methionine. J. Biol. Chem. 166* 161 (19U6) . 11. McMahan, J. K ., and Snell, E. E. The microbiological determination of amino acids I. Valine and arginine. J. Biol. Chem. 152* 63 (19UU). 12. Schweigert, B. S., McIntyre, J. M., Elvehjem, C. A., and Strong, F . M . The direct determination of valine and leucine in fresh animal tissues. J. Biol. Chem. 155* 163 (I9IJ4) . 25 13. Stokes, J. L., and Qunness, M. microorganisms. J. Bact. The amino acid composition of 2 * 195 (19U6). lU. Tamura, S. Zur chemie der bakterien II. 190 (1913). Z. Physiol. Chem. 88>