[The cellular fatty acid composition of bacteria in the family Vibrionaceae].

It is shown that strains of Vibrio cholerae of serovar O1, biovar eltor, subtype Ogawa, museum strains V. cholerae of serovar O1 and NAG-vibrios (isolated from various sources: sea, river and sewage water, canal water and people) possess identical composition of cell fatty acids with prevailing hexadecenoic, hexadecanoic and octadecenoic acids. Being identical, fatty acid profiles of V. parahaemolyticus and V. alginolyticus, are close to that of V. cholerae differing from the latter mainly by the higher content of dodecanoic acid. Similarity of Aeromonas sp. and Vibrio strains in the fatty acid composition proves phylogenetic relation-ship of these bacteria. Fatty acid composition of Plesiomonas shigelloides cells characterized by the presence of methylenhexadecanoic acid as well as by similarity with Vibrio and Aeromonas by the content of most fatty acids confirms a supposition of R. R. Colwell on the intermediate status of genus Plesiomonas between the families Enterobacteriaceae and Vibrionaceae. Independent of the growth medium, the strains Vibrio. Aeromonas and Plesiomonas preserved a fatty-acid profile, inherent in them, with variations mainly in the content of fatty acids with the odd number of carbon atoms. Allowing for relative stability of fatty acid composition and its peculiarity in certain taxonomic groups of the studied bacteria, the above test may be used as additional objective criterion to identify the representatives of Vibrionaceae family.