Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum was induced to lyse by exposure to mitomycin C, with a concomitant production of bacteriocin (clostocin O). The mature lysis began about 180min after mitomycin C treatment and completed after 5hr or more. By the treatment with various antibiotics, premature lysis was provoked before 180min, as follows: 1) Chloramphenicol, oxytetracycline and many other antibiotics inhibited the induction of lysis, when added during the first 90min, by preventing the synthesis of clostocin O-endolysin. However, when they were added at a later period, at which the active endolysin was apparently synthesized in the organisms, they provoked premature lysis of the organisms. The premature lysis began 5 to 30min after the addition of antibiotics, and finished after about 60min, when the correct concentration of antibiotics was used. The lag period after addition of antibiotics before lysis began differed from one antibiotic to another. The rate of lysis was accelerated according to the increased content of endolysin and to the increased concentration of antibiotics. Among the many antibiotics used, protein synthesis inhibitors were the most effective in inducing premature lysis. In the case of oxytetracycline-resistant mutant, the premature lysis was not provoked by oxytetracycline, but was by chloramphenicol,
etc. From these results it was considered that premature lysis of mitomycin C-treated organisms was due both to the action of clostocin O-endolysin and to some metabolic perturbation of protein synthesis resulting from antibiotic treatment.
2) Penicillin, cephaloridine, and cephalosporin C did not inhibit the synthesis of endolysin. Their action on the premature lysis was very different from those of many other antibiotics described above. Mitomycin C-treated organisms were provoked by them to lyse prematurely even when added early in the induction process. However, the actual lysis did not begin until the active endolysin appeared in the organisms, because the content of active endolysin originating from the normal organisms became very small after mitomycin C treatment.
It was concluded that the inhibition of cell wall synthesis or its related protein synthesis resulted in premature lysis in the presence of clostocin O-endolysin. It was further discussed that the mature lysis might be determined by the decline in wall synthesis in addition to the action of endolysin.
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