Abstract
Summary
The nutritional requirements of Lactobacillus bifidus isolated from the ceca of chicks and turkey poults have been studied. All strains were inhibited by high concentrations of sodium acetate. The organisms could be grown in an aerobic atmosphere, provided ascorbic acid was present, without any apparent change in bifid morphology. No growth was observed when a chemically defined medium was employed, but luxuriant growth was obtained in the basal medium when it was supplemented with Phytone or other crude substances. The activity of Phytone could not be replaced by the galactose acetyl-glucosamine or the incorporation of several other known growth-promoting substances into the basal medium. The nutritional fastidiousness of L. bifidus isolated from chicks and poults may suggest that these organisms compete with the host for mutually essential nutrients.
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