Radiometric measurement of differential metabolism of fatty acid by mycobacteria.

An assay system has been developed based on automated radiometric quantification of 14CO2 produced through oxidation of [1-14C] fatty acids by mycobacteria. Two stains of M. tuberculosis (H37Rv and Erdman) and one of M. bovis (BCG) in 7H9 medium (ADC) with 1.0 microCi of one of the fatty acids (butyric, hexanoic, octanoic, decanoic, lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic and linolenic) were studied. Results previously published on M. lepraemurium (Hawaiian) were also included for comparison. Both strains of M. tuberculosis had maximum 14CO2 production from hexanoic acid. Oxidation of butyric and avid oxidation of lauric acids were also found with the H37Rv strain but not with Erdman. In contrast, 14CO2 production by M. bovis was greatest from lauric and somewhat less from decanoic acid. M. lepraemurium showed increasing oxidation rates from myristic, decanoic and lauric acids. Assimilation studies of M. tuberculosis H37Rv confirmed that most of the oxidized substrates were converted into by-products with no change in those from which no oxidation was found. These data suggest that the radiometric measurement of differential fatty acid metabolism may provide a basis of strain identification of the genus Mycobacterium.