The importance of "pantothenic acid" in fermentation, respiration and glycogen storage

THE EFFECTS OF PANTOTHENIC ACID ON RESPIRATORY ACTIVITY

Experiments using the Warburg-Barcroft apparatus led to the following results and conclusions: (1) Two yeasts in three different media were strikingly stimulated in their respiration by minute amounts of pantothenic acid. (2) Nine other compounds (vitamins and other biologically important substances) were tested and found in all cases to have on the deficient G.M. yeast, lesser and in some cases no appreciable stimulative effect. Thiamin was the most effective of these compounds. Its action was shown to be different and in some ways antagonistic to that of pantothenic acid. (3) Liver extract (Lilly's Number 343) contains substances capable of speeding up respiration (and growth) to a much higher level than seems possible with known compounds. (4) Pantothenic acid was found to have a definite stimulative effect on fermentation by dialyzed maceration juice from yeast. (5) It likewise stimulated respiration of apple and potato tissue and indications of a similar effect on certain animal tissues were obtained.

220. The nutritional requirements of the lactic acid bacteria

1. Sucrose and maltose behaved like dextrose, only more specifically in relation to type, in acclerating the rate of growth of lactic acid bacteria in milk. Sucrose was greatly superior to maltose but was never superior to dextrose.

2. Citrate was without significant effect.

3. The sterilization of yeast and dextrose in the medium produced a medium superior to milk + separately heated yeast and dextrose for Streptococcus III. For other types marked differences were not observed.

4. The plant extracts used were found to fall into the following order of ability to accelerate growth: yeast autolysed for 6 days, malt = beer wort, potato, alfalfa, carrot, tomato, clover, yeast autolysed for 2 days, and bean. Malt and beer wort were superior to yeast for some group III organisms.

5. Malt extract and beer wort contain growth factors for some lactic acid bacteria that are not present, or are present only to a small extent in yeast.

6. Alfalfa and clover appear to contain substances specifically stimulating gas production for group III types, especially the streptococci.

7. Normal variations in the content of vitamins B1 and B2 and co-carboxylase in milk do not appear to affect the rate of growth of starter organisms.

PANTOTHENIC ACID AND THE UTILIZATION OF GLUCOSE BY LIVING AND CELL-FREE SYSTEMS

1. Added pantothenic acid was found to have no appreciable effect on the fermentation of glucose when used in conjunction with preparations of dialyzed yeast maceration juice or acetone-precipitated yeast maceration juice. 2. Addition of pantothenic acid failed to affect the rate of phosphorylation of glucose or the rate of decarboxylation of pyruvic acid by yeast maceration juice. 3. Pantothenic acid showed no effect on the rate of glycolysis by homogenized deficient chick tissues. 4. The accelerating effect of pantothenic acid on fermentation by deficient yeast cells was found to be accompanied by a "binding" of pantothenic acid by the yeast cells.