Abstract
A mold strain (NCI 3168) isolated from spoiled brandy cake containing 1.7% ethanol was identified as Moniliella suaveolens var. nigra morphologically and physiologically.
The assimilation of ethanol by this isolate and its growth in the 2% yeast extract and 1% malt extract plus 15% sucrose (YES) broth containing 0.5-15% ethanol were investigated. This isolate assimilated ethanol and grew better in the YES broth containing 0.5-5.0% ethanol than in the medium without it and grew even in the 10%-ethanol-containing YES broth at room temperature.
Moreover, the residue of ethanol in the ethanol-containing (0-10%) medium in which the isolate was growing was determined by gas chromatography. This isolate was fermentative and produced 3-6% ethanol in the ethanol-containing (0-10%) YES broth at 4-10 days after inoculation, and then consumed most of the ethanol with in 3 weeks.
