[Effect of cultivation conditions on the accumulation of poly-beta-hydroxy-butyric acid in Rhizobium lupini].

The influence of the age of the culture and nitrogen source on the accumulation of poly-beta-hydroxybutyric acid by different strains of Rhizobium lupini was studied. The accumulation depended on the age of the culture and reached maximum at the end of the logarithmic and at the beginning of the stationary phase of the bacterial growth (about 50-60% dry weight). The accumulation varied in relation to the nitrogen source used: it was the highest in the glutamate medium and the lowest on nitrate nitrogen; the culture grown on ammonium phosphate was intermediate.