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Abstract
SUMMARY: A large Gram-negative coccus was isolated in a lactate-containing medium from the rumen of young calves. This organism is anaerobic and ferments only lactate, glucose, fructose, maltose, sucrose, mannitol and sorbitol. The coccus is found in large numbers (c. 109/ml.) in the rumen contents of young calves, but is present only in small numbers or is absent from the rumens of older cattle and sheep. An attempt made to establish the organism in large numbers in a sheep rumen was unsuccessful. The possibility of the coccus being a normal inhabitant of the throat of adult animals was also examined. Five serological types were obtained. The distribution of these types in the same animal over a period, and in different animals, appears to be random. The distribution of a small lactate-fermenting coccus (Veillonella gazogenes) is also described.
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