The kinetics of the autolytic phase of growth in cultures of Aspergillus niger.

The kinetics of the autolytic phase of growth in cultures of Aspergillus niger has been studied. Two different autolytic periods could be distinguished. One, consisting of a rapid (exponential) loss (62%) of mycelial weight, occurred between 36 and 117 hours of incubation. A second, consisting of a slow autolysis, occurred between the 117th and the 190th hour of incubation; the mycelial loss here being 5%. Based on the degree of autolysis (alpha = 67.0%), 92.5% and 7.5% are lost during the first and the second autolytic periods, respectively.