Legionnaires' disease bacterium: a non-endospore-former.

This investigation was done to determine whether dipicolinic acid was present in the Legionnaires' disease bacterium. A colorimetric assay for dipicolinic acid was done and the results for the bacterium were compared with those obtained for Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. Dipicolinic acid was not detected in the Legionnaires' disease bacterium. This demonstrated that the bacterium was unable to produce typical bacterial endospores under the experimental conditions examined.