Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Bacteriology logoLink to Journal of Bacteriology
. 1977 Mar;129(3):1574–1583. doi: 10.1128/jb.129.3.1574-1583.1977

Enzymatic defenses against the toxicity of oxygen and of streptonigrin in Escherichia coli.

H M Hassan, I Fridovich
PMCID: PMC235137  PMID: 321433

Abstract

Anaerobically grown Escherichia coli K-12 contain only one superoxide dismutase and that is the iron-containing isozyme found in the periplasmic space. Exposure to oxygen caused the induction of a manganese-containing superoxide dismutase and of another, previously undescribed, superoxide dismutase, as well as of catalase and peroxidase. These inductions differed in their responsiveness towards oxygen. Thus the very low levels of oxygen present in deep, static, aerobic cultures were enough for nearly maximal induction of the manganese-superoxide dismutase. In contrast, induction of the new superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase required the much higher levels of oxygen achieved in vigorously agitated aerobic cultures. Anaerobically grown cells showed a much greater oxygen enhancement of the lethality of streptonigrin than did aerobically grown cells, in accord with the proposal that streptonigrin can serve as an intracellular source of superoxide. Anaerobically grown cells in which enzyme inductions were prevented by puromycin were damaged by exposure to air. This damage was evidenced both as a decline in viable cell count and as structural abnormalities evident under an electron microscope.

Full text

PDF
1575

Images in this article

1579Image
on p.1579
1580Image
on p.1580
1581Image
on p.1581
1582Image
on p.1582

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BEERS R. F., Jr, SIZER I. W. A spectrophotometric method for measuring the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide by catalase. J Biol Chem. 1952 Mar;195(1):133–140. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Beauchamp C., Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutase: improved assays and an assay applicable to acrylamide gels. Anal Biochem. 1971 Nov;44(1):276–287. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(71)90370-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutases. Adv Enzymol Relat Areas Mol Biol. 1974;41(0):35–97. doi: 10.1002/9780470122860.ch2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutases. Annu Rev Biochem. 1975;44:147–159. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.44.070175.001051. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Gregory E. M., Fridovich I. Induction of superoxide dismutase by molecular oxygen. J Bacteriol. 1973 May;114(2):543–548. doi: 10.1128/jb.114.2.543-548.1973. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Gregory E. M., Fridovich I. Oxygen toxicity and the superoxide dismutase. J Bacteriol. 1973 Jun;114(3):1193–1197. doi: 10.1128/jb.114.3.1193-1197.1973. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gregory E. M., Goscin S. A., Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutase and oxygen toxicity in a eukaryote. J Bacteriol. 1974 Feb;117(2):456–460. doi: 10.1128/jb.117.2.456-460.1974. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Gregory E. M., Yost F. J., Jr, Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutases of Escherichia coli: intracellular localization and functions. J Bacteriol. 1973 Sep;115(3):987–991. doi: 10.1128/jb.115.3.987-991.1973. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Keele B. B., Jr, McCord J. M., Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutase from escherichia coli B. A new manganese-containing enzyme. J Biol Chem. 1970 Nov 25;245(22):6176–6181. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. McCord J. M., Fridovich I. Superoxide dismutase. An enzymic function for erythrocuprein (hemocuprein). J Biol Chem. 1969 Nov 25;244(22):6049–6055. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. REYNOLDS E. S. The use of lead citrate at high pH as an electron-opaque stain in electron microscopy. J Cell Biol. 1963 Apr;17:208–212. doi: 10.1083/jcb.17.1.208. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. WATSON M. L. Staining of tissue sections for electron microscopy with heavy metals. J Biophys Biochem Cytol. 1958 Jul 25;4(4):475–478. doi: 10.1083/jcb.4.4.475. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. White H. L., White J. R. Lethal action and metabolic effects of streptonigrin on Escherichia coli. Mol Pharmacol. 1968 Nov;4(6):549–565. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Yost F. J., Jr, Fridovich I. An iron-containing superoxide dismutase from Escherichia coli. J Biol Chem. 1973 Jul 25;248(14):4905–4908. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Bacteriology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES