FIG. 4.

Ratios of individual B. cereus (A) and B. subtilis (B) spores germinating early to those germinating late as a function of germinant concentrations and with and without heat activation. (A) Data are from the experiments in Fig. 3B and C during germination with inosine of B. cereus spores with (○) or without (•) heat activation. The ratio is the total percentage of spores that germinated between 0 and 30 min over that between 50 and 90 min. (B) Data are from experiments with heat-activated B. subtilis spores in Fig. 5A and B during germination with either l-valine (○) or AGFK (▵) and include results using germinant concentrations not shown in Fig. 5. In the AGFK germination, only the concentration of each of the AGF components was varied, while the KPO₄ buffer (pH 7.4) was constant at 12.5 mM. The ratio is the total percentage of spores that germinated between 0 and 30 min over that between 80 and 120 min.