title: Comparison of element levels in minimal and complex yeast media.
abstract: The cellular functions are strongly influenced by the composition of the environment. In particular, phenotypes of microbial strains are modulated by concentrations of ions in the culture medium, and differences in element levels may be responsible for a phenotypic variability observed when microbial strains are grown on synthetic versus complex media. In this report, we analyzed the levels of nine elements (magnesium, potassium, sodium, calcium, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, and phosphorus) and sulphate ions in commercially available peptone and yeast extract and compared them with those in yeast nitrogen base routinely used for preparation of synthetic minimal media. We observed that whereas some elements are present at similar levels, the levels of others differ by a factor as high as 20. The observed differences should be taken into account when interpreting different phenotypes observed for microbial strains grown on synthetic versus complex media.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Comenius University, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Mlynska dolina CH-1, Bratislava, Slovakia.
authors.forename: Lenka
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Abelovska
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bujdos
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kubova
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Petrezselyova
authors.forename: Jozef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nosek
authors.forename: Lubomir
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tomaska
mesh_terms: D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry*; D004602:Elements; D010641:Phenotype; D013053:Spectrophotometry; D015003:Yeasts / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media; D004602:Elements