Identification of taurine occurring sporulating cells of Bacillus subtilis

An unidentified ninhydrin-positive substance was detected in trichloroacetic acid extract from the sporulating cells of Bacillus subtilis NRRL B558. The substance was isolated as the corresponding 2,4-dinitrophenyl (DNP) derivative, the structure of which was identified with a pyridinium salt of DNP-taurine, based on spectral and synthetic evidence. a pyridine molecule should be introduced into a taurine molecule during the isolation procedure and hence, the original amino acid was assigned to taurine. Taurine was accumulated into the cells from the medium during the early stages os sporulation, and thereafter metabolized or excreted.