Morphogenesis, Biomass and Oxytetracycline Production by Streptomyces rimosus in Submerged Cultivation

The minimal concentration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) which could be detected with spectrophotometry, HPLC and luciferin-luciferase methods was 1.0µM, 3.3µM and 100 nM, respectively. In submerged cultivation, most Streptomyces rimosus TM-55 was in hyphae fragment form at 65 h, became short-rod mycelia at 166 h, and lysed at 504 h incubation. The ATP content had maximal value at 24 h, then gradually dl-creased during cultivation. The oxytetracycline potency increased as incubation occurred, had maximal potency 178.9µg/ml at 166 h, and then gradually decreased. Morphogenesis was very important in oxytetracycline production in submerged cultivation of Strcptomycesw; short-rod mycelia had high oxytetracycline production.