Subgrouping of Pseudomonas cepacia by cellular fatty acid composition

The cellular fatty acid compositions were determined for 42 strains of Pseudomonas cepacia from five cystic fibrosis centers in North America. All isolates contained significant (20%) amounts of hexadecanoic (C16:0), and cis-9 hexadecenoic (C16:1 cis9) acids and an isomer of octadecenoic acid (C18:1). None had hydroxy acids containing fewer than 14 carbon atoms. The quantitative data from the fatty acid analysis were highly reproducible and provided a basis for numerical analysis. Five subgroups comprising all the strains were obtained by cluster analysis and further characterized by principal-component analysis. With minor exceptions, the predominant subgroup identified in each center was different from that identified in other centers and accounted for one-half of the isolates within each center. Cellular fatty acid composition is a useful adjunct to biochemical characterization for the identification of P. cepacia isolated from cystic fibrosis patients. Numerical analysis of the fatty acid data can separate P. cepacia into subgroups, which may provide useful epidemiologic information or a basis for further analysis by more complex techniques such as DNA probe analysis.