Gas liquid chromatography of amines produced by the Enterobacteriaceae.

1. Gas liquid chromatography (GLC) was used to test the production of amines by 85 strains of Enterobacteriaceae. 2. The strains tested produced cadaverine, beta-phenylethylamine, putrescine, iso-amylamine, 2-methylbutylamine and iso-butylamine. 3. Although the overlap in amine production between obviously different genera and species limits the general applicability of this methodology in clinical microbiology, the results obtained demonstrate the possibility of differentiating Proteus rettgeri from other Proteus species, Escherichia coli from Proteus species and Salmonella species from Shigella species on the basis of their amine composition. 4. In general, members of the Enterobacteriaceae family produce qualitatively similar amine profiles, though differing quantitatively in the amounts of individual amines produced. GLC proved to be useful for separating amines and for providing tentative peak identification.