Pyrolysis gas-liquid chromatography of the genus Bacillus: effect of growth media on pyrochromatogram reproducibility.

Pyrolysis gas-liquid chromatography was performed on dried Bacillus microorganisms to evaluate the effects of growth media. Six cultures of Bacillus and six lot numbers of Trypticase soy agar (BBL) were used to test the hypothesis that a microorganism grown on various lot numbers of the same chromatogram. Also tested was the effect of three different media on chromatogram reproduction using the same six cultures. Results show little or no differences observed between the chromatograms of the individual Bacillus spp. grown on the six lot numbers of Trypticase soy agar. When chromatograms of the three different media were compared, several differences were observed, particularly in the areas most characteristic of individual species. Pryolysis gas-liquid chromatography can be a useful tool for the characterization or identification of the genus Bacillus if the chromatographic and cultural conditions are maintained.