抄録
Cells of clostrida, such as Clostridium tetani, Clostridium septicum and Clostridium butyricum, growing exponentially in a hypertonic sucrose-thioglycolate medium were quantitatively converted into osmotically fragile spheroplasts after addition of penicillin (1-1, 000 μ/ml) or glycine (1-3 %). The induction of spheroplasts occurred more rapidly at higher concentrations of the spheroplasting agents. In C. butyricum the rod cells transformed to irregular polyhedral forms as well as spheres.
The process of the spheroplast formation was followed by the electron microscope. Shortly after penicillin or glycine was added, the rod cells developed globular extrusions either centrally, subterminally or terminally. In C. butyricum the angular as well as globular extrusions were developed. The extrusions progressively enlarged to form spheres or irregular polyhedral forms (C. butyricum) and the retained portions of the rod attached to them withered away. The resulting spherical and polyhdral bodies, which appeared to have lost most parst of the cell wall, retained flagella but were non-motile.
