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. 1981 Feb;41(2):371–374. doi: 10.1128/aem.41.2.371-374.1981

Purification and Characterization of an Autolysin from Clostridium acetobutylicum

Jocelyn R Webster 1, Sharon J Reid 1, David T Jones 1, David R Woods 1
PMCID: PMC243701  PMID: 16345710

Abstract

A proteinaceous substance with antibiotic-like activity, resembling that of a bacteriocin, was isolated from an industrial-scale acetone-butanol fermentation of Clostridium acetobutylicum. The substance, purified by acetone precipitation, diethylaminoethyl cellulose chromatography, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was characterized as a glycoprotein with a molecular weight of 28,000. The glycoprotein was partially inactivated by certain protease enzymes. It had no effect on deoxyribonucleic acid, ribonucleic acid, or protein synthesis, and it did not result in the loss of intracellular adenosine triphosphate. The glycoprotein lysed sodium dodecyl sulfate-treated cells and cell wall preparations, and therefore it is referred to as an autolysin. The autolysin gene appeared to be chromosomal since plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid was not detected in the C. acetobutylicum strain.

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Selected References

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

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