Abstract
The properties of the cell wall lytic enzyme produced by Streptomyces no. 62 strain were studied. The lytic enzyme had a optimal activity in the pH range from 7.2 to 8.0, with highest activity at 7.6, and appeared relatively thermolabile.
Besides 17 kinds of yeasts including Willia anomala and Endomyces magnusii, some fungi such as Aspergillus oryzae, Penicillium chrysogenum and Neurospora crassa were lysed by the lytic enzyme. Among the bacteria tested, only hemolytic group A Streptococcus and Micrococcus lysodeikticus were found to be sensitive to the enzyme.
The cell walls of Saccharomyces cervisiae, isolated by mechanical disintegration, were lysed by the lytic enzyme. The "protoplast" of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was formed by the lytic enzyme within thirty minutes incubation.
It appears that the lytic enzyme solution is a mixture of enzymes since it has a strong protease activity, which, when arrested by an inhibitor, lyses the cell walls of yeast to a lesser extent than with uninhibited protease present.
