THE GENUS NOCARDIA 



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oval oidiospores. The mycelium is gram- 

 positive and is not acid-fast . 



Agar media : The strains give aonbutyrous 

 colonics growing into the agar, with moder- 

 ately striated dull surface covered with 

 slightly developed white powder-like aerial 

 mycelium. The color of the colonics is a 

 constanl yellowish-orange; it never turns 

 red or yellow; no soluble pigment is pro- 

 duced. In liquid synthetic media a surface 

 pellicle resembling agar colonies is formed. 



( ielat in: No liquefact ion. 



Milk: Xo coagulation; no peptonization. 



Sugar inversion: None. 



Starch hydrolysis: None. 



Nitrate reduction: Rapid. 



Paraffin utilization: Slight or none. 



Optimum temperature: 14 :;7°C. 



Carlton utilization: Does not utilize man- 

 nose, dextrin, inulin. 



Habital : Deep layers Bi horizon of saline 

 soils. 



oil. Nocardia upcotiii (Erikson, L935) 

 Waksman (Gibson, A. G. J. Pathol. Bac- 

 teriol. 23: :;.">7, 1020; Erikson, I). Med. Re- 

 search Council Spec. Rept. Ser. 203: 22-23, 

 L935). 



Morphology: Growth forms Long, straight 

 filaments, much interwoven and ramified. 

 Aerial mycelium slight, transient, slightly 

 acid-fast . 



Glycerol nitrate agar: Colonies small, 

 round, cream-colored, glistening; heavy 

 texture, margins submerged, hater, growth 

 very much convoluted and raised, broad 

 submerged margin ; medium becomes slighl ly 

 reddish. 



Calcium malate agar: Growth limited, 

 colorless, membranous, with undulating 

 margin. 



Nutrient agar: Colonies smooth, shining, 

 round, cream-colored; margin submerged. 

 Aerial mycelium scant, white. Later, colonies 

 are large with greenish tinge; very sparse 

 aerial mycelium gradually disappears. 



Glucose nutrient agar: Colonies smooth, 



round, cream-colored; margin depressed, 



centers elevated, hollow on reverse side; 

 hit ei- a coherent membranous growth, yellow- 

 ish. 



Potato agar: Growth poor, in form of 

 small, colorless, blister colonic-. Medium 

 slightly discolored. 



Egg medium: Colonies round, flat, color- 

 less, scale-like, some marked by concentric 

 rings and slightly hollowed in center. Growth 

 becomes yellow-brown. 



Blood agar: Colonies huge, drab, heavily 

 textured. Xo aerial mycelium. Xo hemolysis. 



Gelatin: Growth abundant, flocculent, 

 cream-colored on surface. Gradual liquefac- 

 tion. 



Source: From the spleen in a case of 

 acholuric jaundice. 



57. Nocardia vaccinii Demarec and Smith. 

 L952 (Demarec, J. B. and Smith, X. 1!. 

 Phytopathology 12: 249-252, 1952). 



Morphology: Growth in form of rods and 

 filaments, 0.4 n to 0.S M in diameter; granular 

 appearance when stained; eventually Wreak- 

 ing up into bacillary forms. Pew cells acid- 

 fast. Fat demonstrated by staining with 

 Sudan black B. 



Sucrose nitrate agar: Growth scant, gray. 



Nutrient agar: Growth p \ slow, granu- 

 lar, gray, sometimes pinkish in old cultures. 



Gelatin: Growth dry, ribbon-like. Xo 

 liquefaction. 



Starch nut rient agar: ( rrowt h dry, ribbon- 

 like, pinkish to orange. Bydrolysis of starch 

 posit ive. 



Potato: Growth slow, spreading, raised, 

 gray. 



Milk: Growth dry, raised, gray with 

 orange spot-. Xo peptonization. 



Nit rate redud ion : Positive. 



Carbon utilization: With ammonia as the 

 source of nit rogen, acid formed from glucose, 

 sucrose, glycerol, and niaiinitol; reactions 

 variable with arabinose and xylose; no 

 growt h on lactose or sorbitol. 



Paraffin: Utilized. 



