A Small‐colony Variant of Candida Albicans

B ianchi , D. E. (San Fernando Valley State Coll., Northridge, Calif.) A small‐colony variant of Candida albicans. Amer. Jour. Bot. 48(6): 499–503. Illus. 1961.—Normal cultures of Candida albicans give rise to a small‐colony variant similar in many respects to the “petite” of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The difference in colony size is due to a difference in the rate of cell division. They arise spontaneously from the wild‐type at a frequency of from 1–3%, and the individual cells of both types are the same size. However, unlike the “petite,” they contain the enzymes cytochrome oxidase, cytochrome b , and succinic dehydrogenase, and they respire normally.