THE PERMITTISTAT - A NOVEL TYPE OF TURBIDOSTAT

Baker's yeast was grown in a novel type of turbidostat in which the steady-state biomass level was controlled not by the optical turbidity but by the dielectric permittivity of the suspension at appropriate radio frequencies. Dry weight, fresh weight, the optical density at 600 nm, percentage viability (from methylene blue staining), bud count and ethanol concentration were measured off-line and the cell size distribution was recorded using flow cytometry. Any changes in the physiological properties of the yeast had a negligible effect on the ratio between the permittivity set (and measured) and the steady-state dry weight, fresh weight or optical density of the cultures. The permittistat was found to provide an extremely convenient means for carrying out turbidostatic culture.