Reconstitution of Pronase-Susceptible Flocs of Flavobacterium sp.

A component responsible for the aggregation of cells was extracted from Flavobacterium strain B by treatment of cells with 5 m guanidine hydrochloride and partially purified by gel filtration. The guanidine hydrochloride-extracted cells were reaggregated with the component after dialysis against 0.3mm of CaCl₂. Various divalent cations were effective in place of Ca²⁺, but Ca²⁺ was most effective for reconstitution. The reconstituted flocs were deflocculated by the treatment of Pronase or ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid indicating that reconstituted flocs closely resemble natural flocs.