Official Wisconsin State Symbols
Almost Offical Wisconsin State Microbe: Lactococcus lactis
Almost Offical Wisconsin State Microbe: Lactococcus lactis
Photo: Lactococcus lactis. UW Department of Bacteriology strain LcL325UW. Magnification 20000X. Scanning electron micrograph by Joseph A. Heintz, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Almost Offical Wisconsin State Microbe - Lactococcus lactis - Wisconsin almost became the first State to name an official microbe. Lactococcus lactis is a microbe classified informally as a Lactic Acid Bacterium because it ferments milk sugar (lactose) to lactic acid. Lactococci are found associated with plant material, mainly grasses, from which they are easily inoculated into milk.
Lactococcus lactis was approved by the Wisconsin State Assembly on April 15, 2010 to become the official State Microbe but it was not picked-up by the Senate.
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