Fig. 4.

Effects of the vvpS mutation on the autolysis of V. vulnificus. (A) Cultures of the parental lacZ mutant and lacZ vvpS double mutant harboring plasmid pMS1061, which constitutively expresses β-galactosidase, were grown in LBS at 30°C. Samples were removed at the indicated times, and β-galactosidase activities in the supernatant were measured (reported in Miller units). The error bars represent the SEM. *, P < 0.05, and **, P < 0.005 relative to the parental lacZ mutant at the indicated times. (B) Cultures of the wild type and vvpS mutant were grown in LBS at 30°C, and samples were removed at the indicated times for detection of eDNAs released into the supernatant. The eDNAs were stained with ethidium bromide. Molecular size markers (1-kb Plus DNA Ladder; Invitrogen) and eDNAs (arrow) are shown in kilobases. ND, not detected.