[Growth and oxidation of sulfur compounds by Thiocapsa roseopersicina in darkness]

The purple sulphur bacterium Thiocapsa roseopersicina, strain BBS, grown in the darkness in aerobic autotrophic conditions, oxidized sulphides to free sulphur and then to sulphates. This was accompanied with the fixation of carbon dioxide by the cells. Addition of glucose to the mineral medium increased the biomass yield; the cells oxidized thiosulphate still at a high rate. These results prove the possibility of switching T. roseopersicina from photosynthesis to a dark chemolithautotrophic way of life.