Rr. Taylor et al., ALTERNATIVES TO ARGININE AS ENERGY-SOURCES FOR THE NON-FERMENTATIVE MYCOPLASMA-GALLINARUM, FEMS microbiology letters, 115(2-3), 1994, pp. 163-167
In contrast to previously studied non-fermentative arginine-hydrolysin
g (F-/A+) Mycoplasma species, M. gallinarum cells suspended in a salts
solution oxidised ethanol and L-lactic, pyruvic and 2-oxobutyric acid
s. The organic acids were additionally shown effectively to replace ar
ginine as energy sources in growth media. However, their presence did
not inhibit arginine hydrolysis, nor did arginine inhibit organic acid
catabolism. The ability to oxidise organic acids is a potentially use
ful diagnostic character enabling sub-division of the F-/A+ Mycoplasma
species. M. gallinarum also differed from previously studied F-/A+ my
coplasmas in possessing relatively high NADH oxidase activity and prod
ucing H2O2 as only a minor product of NADH oxidation.