SAPROPHYTIC MICROCOCCI. 



215 



highly refracting, remain as arthrospores, and develop 

 in fresh nutritive solutions to new coccus chains. 



The organism grows on the surface of carrots or beet- 

 root in the form of thick massive gelatinous cakes, of 

 cartilaginous consistence. It also flourishes in solutions 

 of grape and cane sugar, to which nitrates and phos- 

 phates have been added. Cane sugar is in the first 

 place converted into glucose, by a ferment formed by the 



Fig. 57. 



Leuconostoc mesenterioides. (After Zopf .) 



1, 2, 3, 4. Successive stages of division of the cocci and formation of 

 the gelatinous material. 5. A collection of small zooglaea. 6. Section 

 through an older zooglaea mass, containing fairly long torula-like 

 threads. 7. Chain of cocci, showing spores here and there, the spores 

 being larger than the cocci. 



organisms. When the organisms develop luxuriantly, 

 enormous quantities of sugar can be assimilated in a 

 relatively short time and converted into the substance of 

 the organisms, chiefly into the gelatinous material. This 

 material is described by Scheibler as " dextran," and the 

 whole process, which may be very hurtful to the manufac- 

 turers of sugar, is included under the term " dextran fer- 

 mentation." Nothing is as yet known as to the growth 

 of the organism on the ordinary solid nutritive media. 



