Abstract

I. A. Ekwealor and J. A. N. Obeta

A Lysine-producing strain recovered from soil was found to produce large amount of the amino acid. The bacterium identified as Bacillus megaterium SP 14 accumulated a lysine yield of 3.56 mg/ml in a broth culture in 96 h. Fermentation experiments show that 8.0% (w/v) glucose and 4.0% (w/v) ammonium chloride used as sources of carbon and nitrogen, respectively, in a medium/fermenter volume ratio of 25.0%, influenced accumulation of the amino acid. Amino acids other than the aspartate family at 0.01% (w/v) stimulated growth and improved lysine yield. Addition of 0.01 unit/ml penicillin to the fermentation medium, immediately after inoculation, stimulated growth and appreciably enhanced lysine accumulation.