FAMILY LACTOBACTEKIACEAE 



309 



Martelly, Ann. Inst. Past., 16, 1902, 885; 

 Pr^vot, Ann. Sci. Nat., S^r. Bot., 15, 

 1933, 140.) From Latin magnus, large. 



Large spheres: 1.5 to 1.8 microns, 

 usually in pairs, sometimes occurring 

 singly, in small clumps or very short 

 chains. Gram-positive. 



Gelatin: Growth slow, scanty. No 

 liquefaction. 



Deep agar colonies : After 24 hours at 

 37°C, lenticular, whitish, granular; mar- 

 gin finely cut. No gas produced. 



Broth: Turbid, clearing in 4 or 5 days 

 resulting in a viscous mass similar to the 

 zoogloea which Clostridium hifcrmenians 

 forms. 



Peptone water: Slight turbidity. 

 Indole not formed. 



Milk: Unchanged. 



Fibrin not digested. 



Sterilized urine : Turbid in 3 tu 4 days. 

 The urea is attacked forming (NH4)2C03. 



Proteoses : Digested and disintegrated 

 forming (NH4)2C03 with the liberation 

 of NH3. 



Carbohydrates not attacked. 



Optimum pH 7.0. Limits of pH 5.5 

 to 8.5. 



Temperature relations : Optimum 37°C. 

 Grows from 18° to 37°C'. Killed in five 

 minutes on boiling or in half an hour 

 at 60°C. 



Non-pathogenic. 



Strict anaerobe. 



Distinctive characters: Large size; 

 very marked alkalinizing power. 



Source : Isolated by Tissier and 

 Martelly {loc. cil.) from putrefying 

 butcher's meat. Isolated by Prevot 

 {loc. cit.) from a case of acute ap- 

 pendicitis. 



Habitat : Human digestive tract. 

 Very common on butcher's meat in the 

 process of putrefaction. Probably occurs 

 in household dust. 



3. Diplococcus paleopneumoniae 



Prevot. (An anaerobic pseudopneumo- 

 coccus, Rist, These de Paris, 1898; Der 

 Frankelsche Diplococcus, Bolognesi, 

 Cent, f . Bakt., I Abt., Orig., 43, 1907, 113 ; 

 Prevot, Ann. Sci. Nat., Ser. Bot., 15, 

 1933, 143.) From Greek paleus, old and 

 pneumonia, inflammation of the lungs. 



Spheres: About 0.7 to 1.0 micron, oc- 

 curring in pairs, rarely occurring singly 

 or in very short chains. Capsulated. 

 Gram-positive. 



Gelatin: No liquefaction. 



Deep agar colonies : Probably len- 

 ticular. 



Agar slant colonies : Round, raised, 

 transparent, dew-drop. 



Broth : Opalescent turbidity which 

 settles as a rather abundant, powdery, 

 flocculent precipitate. No gas produced. 



Glucose or lactose broth: Rapid, 

 abundant growth. 



Peptone water (2 per cent) : Very slow 

 development. After 4 or 5 days at 37°C 

 growth verj' poor. 



Milk: Good growth. Partial coagu- 

 lation. 



Blood agar: Very rapid, abundant 

 growth. 



Acid from glucose and lactose. 



Temperature relations : Optimum 37°C. 

 No growth at 20°C nor at 42°C. Killed 

 at 55°C. 



Pathogenic. 



Strict anaerobe. 



Distinctive characters : Resembles 



and gas-forming, seem to us so different from the fermentative microaerophilic 

 diplococci, streptococci, leuconostocs and lactobacilli that we beleive they should 

 be placed in genera and in a family separate from Lactobacteriaceae . Prevot in a 

 discussion (Ann. Inst. Past., 67, 1941, 87) that has just reached us (Oct., 1945) 

 recognizes this difference in physiology. He would solve the difficulty by return- 

 ing the fermentative diplococci and streptococci to the family Coccaceae because 

 of resemblances in morphology which do not seem to us to be fundamental — The 

 editors. 



