CONTINUOUS CULTURE OF BRUCELLA ABORTUS S.19

Abstract

An apparatus is described for the continuous growth of bacteria. Brucella abortus S.19 has been grown in continuous culture for periods up to 3 weeks with populations up to 2 × 1011viable cells per ml and without the establishment of nonsmooth variants.Concentrations between 3 × 109and 2 × 1011cells per ml could be maintained as a function of the dilution rate without the requirement of a known limiting factor in the medium. In a series of steady-state conditions, the specific growth rate increased steadily up to 0.28 hour−1with decreasing population levels.Incidence of mutants was governed by the dilution rate and could also be reduced by various chelating substances.In continuous growth combined with continuous dialysis, population levels were approximately twice those obtained in continuous growth without dialysis. The effect of dialysis appears to be the continuous removal of growth-limiting metabolic products.