898 



MANUAL OF DFiTERMIXATIVE BACTERIOLOGY 



f. Bakt., II Abt., 73, 1928, 86; Actino- 

 myces crystallophagus Bergey et al., 

 Manual, 3rd ed., 1930, 473; Proactino- 

 myces opac us Jensen, Proc. Linnean Soc. 

 New So. Wales, 57, 1932, 369; Proaciino- 

 myces crystallophagus Reed, in Manual, 

 5th ed., 1939, 834.) From Latin opacus, 

 shady, darkened. 



Description from Gray and Thornton 

 {loc. cit.), Bynoe (Thesis, McGill Uni- 

 versity, Montreal, 1931), and Jensen 

 {loc. cit.). 



Long, curved, irregular and branching 

 filaments or rods: 0.8 to 1.0 by 2 to 16 

 microns, or occasionally longer. Few 

 chains or clumps are formed. In older 

 cultures shorter rods or cocci are gener- 

 ally formed. Readily stained. Not 

 acid-fast. Gram-positive. 



Gelatin colonies : Round, convex, whit- 

 ish, smooth, shining, edges slightly ar- 

 borescent. Deep colonies: Burrs, with 

 slightly irregular processes. 



Gelatin stab : Convex, whitish, smooth, 

 resinous, filiform, erose. 



Broth : Turbid with broken white 

 scum, or clear with granular suspension. 



Dorset's egg medium: Spreading, 

 smooth, moist, salmon-colored growth. 



Loeffler's medium: Scanty growth, 

 smooth, moist, light buff-colored. 



Glycerol potato : Dry, rough, crumpled, 

 pink to buff -colored growth. 



Litmus milk : Grayish pellicle ; slightly 

 alkaline. 



Nitrites are produced from nitrates. 



No acid from sucrose, lactose, maltose 

 or glucose. 



Phenol and naphthalene are utilized as 

 sources of energy. 



Optimum pH 6.8 to 7.3. 



Optimum temperature 30°C. 



Distinctive characters : Differs from 

 Nocardia corallina and Nocardia poly- 

 chromogenes in that the cells are much 

 longer than those of the former and much 

 shorter than those of the latter. Grows 

 in smooth convex surface colonies and 

 burr-like deep colonies. 



Source : Twenty-four strains isolated 

 from soils in Great Britain. 



Habitat : Probably sparingly distrib- 

 uted in soils. 



5. Nocardia erythropolis (Gray and 

 Thornton) comb. nov. {Mycobacterium 

 erythropolis Gray and Thornton, Cent, 

 f. Bakt., II Abt., 73, 1928, 87; Actino- 

 myces erythropolis Bergey et al., Manual, 

 3rd ed., 1930, 472; Proactinomyces 

 erythropolis Jensen, Proc. Linnean Soc. 

 of New So. Wales, 57, 1932, 371.) From 

 Greek erythrus, red and polis, city. 



Description from Gray and Thornton 

 {loc. cit.) and from Bynoe (Thesis, 

 McGill University, Montreal, 1931). 



Long uneven-sided rods and filaments, 

 curved and branching up to 11 microns 

 long by 0.8 micron. Coccoid forms not 

 formed. Stains readily. Not acid-fast. 

 Gram-positive. 



Gelatin colonies : After 12 days, round, 

 flat, white, shining; edge entire. Deep 

 colonies: Round, smooth. 



Gelatin stab: After 8 to 14 days, con- 

 vex, white, smooth, shining, radiate from 

 center, borders cleft. Line of puncture 

 filiform, erose. 



Agar colonies : Round, 2 to 3 mm in 

 diameter, convex, watery -white ; edge 

 entire. Deep colonies : Lens-shaped. 



Agar slant : Filiform, flat, watery 

 growth; edge undulate. 



Broth: Growth slight, turbid. 



Dorset's egg medium: After 2 weeks, 

 raised, moist, finely granular, irregular 

 margin, flesh-colored. 



Loeffler's medium : After 7 days growth 

 as on Dorset's egg medium, but pink. 



Glycerol potato: After 7 days, flat, 

 dry, rough, orange -colored. 



Litmus milk: Pale pink pellicle. 



Nitrites not produced from nitrates. 



No acid from glucose, lactose, sucrose 

 or glycerol. 



Phenol is utilized. 



Optimum pH 6.8 to 8.0. 



Optimum temperature 25°C. 



