Composition of the Cell Wall of Lactobacillus bifidus

Abstract

ANALYSES of hydrolysates of cell walls from a large number of different Gram-positive bacteria led to the suggestion that the chemical composition of bacterial cell walls may be a valuable taxonomic character. In general, the particular amino-acids present in the cell wall appeared to be characteristic of the genus, while specific and to a lesser extent strain differences were reflected in the type and relative amounts of the sugars and hexosamines present¹.