Strategies to disperse aggregates so the cells remain in suspension long enough to take stable absorbance readings are studied. The optical density of highly flocculating yeasts, such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae ATCC 26603, drops because of cells settling to the bottom in less than 1 min. It presents a problem in using turbidimetric measurement for cell density estimate. Dilution of the yeast samples with sodium salts in a wide range of concentrations (10 mM to 1 M) disperses the aggregates, whereas dilution with calcium salts does not. ζ‐Potential measurements indicate that sodium disperses the yeast flocs by reversal of the charges on the cell surfaces. An attempt is also made to resolve the controversy about the role of sodium ions in flocculation.
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