Chemotaxonomic identity ofCorynebacterium matruchotii from animal and human dental plaques

Eight strains ofCorynebacterium matruchotii, isolated from the dental plaque of patas monkeys and orangutans as part of a study of the flora of animal plaque, were compared with isolates from human sources. The polypeptide patterns on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were similar, and the animal isolates were not distinguished from human strains by the mean base composition of DNA, the peptidoglycan components, the cell wall carbohydrates, nor the mycolic acids. All strains appear to belong to the same species, which is distinct from other species ofCorynebacterium.