Applied and Environmental Microbiology

Limit the abstract to 250 words or fewer and concisely summarize the basic content of the paper without presenting extensive experimental details. Avoid abbreviations and do not include diagrams. When it is essential to include a reference, use the same format as shown in the References section but omit the article title. Because the abstract will be published separately by abstracting services, it must be complete and understandable without reference to the text. Introduction. The introduction should supply sufficient background information to allow the reader to understand and evaluate the results of the present study without referring to previous publications on the topic. The introduction should also provide the rationale for the present study. Use only those references required to provide the most salient background rather than an exhaustive review of the topic. Materials and Methods. The Materials and Methods section should include sufficient technical information to allow the experiments to be repeated. When centrifugation conditions are critical, give enough information to enable another investigator to repeat the procedure: make of centrifuge, model of rotor, temperature, time at maximum speed, and centrifugal force (3 g rather than revolutions per minute). For commonly used materials and methods (e.g., media and protein concentration determinations), a simple reference is sufficient. If several alternative methods are commonly used, it is helpful to identify the method briefly as well as to cite the reference. For example, it is preferable to state “cells were broken by ultrasonic treatment as previously described INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS v