|
|
|
|
|
| J Clin Microbiol, 1977 Dec, 6(6), 586 - 90 Presumptive diagnosis of anaerobic bacteremia by gas-liquid chromatography of blood cultures; Wust J; By quantitative gas-liquid chromatography of glucose-containing blood cultures at the moment of first signs of growth, a presumptive diagnosis of anaerobic bacteremia could be made in 24 out of 26 cultures yielding obligate anaerobes upon subsequent culture . With Bacteroides sp . (20 strains isolated), elevated levels of isovaleric acid (greater than or equal to 0.1 mumol/ml) and/or succinic acid (greater than or equal to 5 mumol/ml) were detected in the medium used . An exception to this were two strains of Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron that did not produce sufficient quantities of these acids . In the case of butyrate-producing gram-positive cocci (four strains), butyric acid in amounts of greater than or equal to 0.8 mumol/ml was detected . Propionibacteria (five strains) produced propionic acid in amounts of greater than or equal to 3.9 mumol/ml . No false positive results were found in 103 blood cultures with growth of aerobic or facultatively anaerobic bacteria only. J Natl Cancer Inst, 1977 Dec, 59(6), 1697 - 708 Reticulostimulating properties of killed vaccines of anaerobic coryneforms and other organisms; Cummins CS et al.; Vaccines prepared from 115 strains of anaerobic coryneforms and other organisms were tested in mice for their reticulostimulating ability as judged by the degree of spleen hypertrophy produced after ip injection . Almost all vaccines caused a statistically significant increase in spleen weight, but the ability to produce spleen ratios (test mean wt:control mean wt) of 4 or more was confined to Propionibacterium acnes and P . avidum strains . P . acnes, type II, gave high spleen ratios more frequently than strains of any other type. Wien Klin Wochenschr, 1977 Oct 28, 89(20), 677 - 83 {Progress in medicine in individual presentations, XI . Modern forms of therapy in acne}; Fanta D et al.; Several pathogenetic factors contribute to the development of acne vulgaris . These include genetic predisposition, hormonal influences, increasing sebaceous secretion, bacterial colonization of the follicle and keratinization defects in the follicular epithelium . Modern acne therapy can take specific forms on the basis of recent research on pathogenesis . Sebostatic therapy can be performed by the topical application of benzoyl peroxide or the systemic administration of hormones (oestrogens, antiandrogens) . Local treatment with retinoic has proved optimal in achieving a comedolytic effect . Moreover, the long-term use of antibiotics--tetracyclines, erythromycin systemically or benzoyl peroxide topically--is beneficial in respect to a reduction in Propionibacterium acnes . Experiments with immunological therapy are still in the early stages . Optimum results are obtained by the rational combination of several therapeutic modalities adapted to the type of acne to be treated. J Gen Microbiol, 1977 Oct, 102(2), 223 - 33 Effects of oxygen on Propionibacterium shermanii grown in continuous culture; Pritchard GG et al.; Growth yields, enzyme activities, cytochrome concentrations and the rates of product formation were determined in Propionibacterium shermanii cultures grown in a chemostat with lactate as the energy source at various concentrations of oxygen . Oxygen was toxic when its partial pressure in the inflowing gas was just sufficient to give measurable dissolved oxygen concentration in the culture, when it inhibited lactate oxidation and NADH oxidase activity . Below this oxygen concentration, P . shermanii behaved as a facultative anaerobe . The adaptation from anaerobic metabolism to aerobic metabolism, however, was complex . Low partial pressures of oxygen led to decreased cytochrome and membrane-bound dehydrogenase activities and molar growth yield . Above an oxygen partial pressure of 42 mmHg in the inflowing gas stream, these changes were reversed, leading to an aerobic type of metabolism . At the highest subtoxic concentration of oxygen used (330 mmHg in the input gas), lactate was oxidized mainly to acetate and carbon dioxide and the rate of propionate formation was very low . The high molar growth yield obtained under these conditions suggested that lactate and NADH oxidation via the cytochrome electron transport system was coupled to ATP synthesis. Hoppe Seylers Z Physiol Chem, 1977 Oct, 358(10), 1315 - 23 {On the preparation of intermediates in cobyrinic acid biosynthesis by suspensions of Propionibacterium shermanii (author's transl)}; Bergmann KH et al.; The preparation of a dimethyltetrahtdrouroporphyrin (Faktor II or sirohydrochlorin) using suspensions of Propionibacterium shermanii as well as a promising method for the isolation of tetrapyrrols with at least four carboxy substituents from cell-free extracts and growth media are described . Also a Faktor II-analogue with three methyl groups which are derived from L-methionine is reported . Incorporation experiments indicate that this is an intermediate in cobyrinic acid formation . Because of this, and from spectroscopic (field desorptionmass, visible absorption) studies it is concluded that the "extra" methyl group is located at the meso-carbon between two methylated reduced rings. Arch Dermatol Res, 1977 Aug 22, 259(2), 169 - 76 {Porphyrinsynthesis by propionibacterium acnes (author's transl)}; Formanek I et al.; Strains of P.a . were isolated from seborrheic filaments from 11 persons and investigated according to their production of porphyrins . After growing the organisms during a 5 resp . 10 days cultivation period on solid as well as in liquid culture medium the quantity and quality of the bacterial porphyrins were determined . There existed intense variations in quantity not only when the special strains were compared with each other but also when the same strains were treated with different preparations . The porphyrin-spectrum, as demonstrated by thin-layer-chromatography, showed porphyrins with 2--8 carboxyclic groups, the coproporphyrin standing out in most cases as the most intense band. Biochim Biophys Acta, 1977 Aug 11, 483(2), 487 - 91 Purification of methylmalonyl-CoA mutase from Propionibacterium shermanii using affinity chromatography; Murthy VV et al.; A novel procedure for the purification of methylmalonyl-CA mutase from Propionibacterium shermanii has been described which employs affinity chromatography on a column of immobilized vitamin B-12 linked covalently to Sepharose . The method has the advantage of being simple and rapid, thus enabling the purification of the enzyme to near homogeneity with good yields. Br J Dermatol, 1977 Aug, 97(2), 205 - 11 Lymphocyte transformation in subjects with nodulo cystic acne; Puhvel SM et al.; Patients with severe nodulo-cystic acne are known to have elevated serum antibody levels and increased immediate hypersensitivity reactions to Propionibacterium acnes . This organism is the predominant bacterium in normal pilosebaceous follicles of human skin, and can be consistently isolated from pustular lesions in acne . Previously it had been observed that delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity reactions to P . acnes were negative in patients with acne . The present study investigated the proliferative response of lymphocytes from patients with nodulo-cystic acne to phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) and P . acnes antigen stimulation . The response to PHA stimulation was within normal limits . The response to P . acnes antigen showed a significant increase over control values obtained by testing lymphocytes from acne-free subjects . Thus cell mediated immunity to P . acnes may be present in subjects with severe inflammatory acne . These findings raise the possibility that reactions to P . acnes may contribute to intensifying the inflammatory response in acne lesions. Arch Intern Med, 1977 Jul, 137(7), 921 - 3 Propionibacterium acnes meningitis in a previously normal adult; Schlesinger JJ et al.; A 25-year-old man was previously healthy until he contracted acute Propionibacterium acnes meningitis . Comparison with previous reports of de novo diphtheroid meningitis suggests that this entity can appear with features that are not characteristic of acute bacterial meningitis, including (1) stroke-like syndromes, (2) an afebrile course, and (3) a cerebrospinal fluid with a mononuclear pleocytosis and normal glucose level . The appropriate choice and dosage of antimicrobial agent must be guided by more than in vitro sensitivity data to prevent relapse and possible chronic meningitis . Although diphtheroids are as a rule exquisitely sensitive to penicillin, predictably high tissue levels of drug in diphtheroid meningitis are best achieved with chloramphenicol treatment . In the appropriate settling, the isolation of diphtheroids from cerebrospinal fluid should not be discounted as a "contaminant." Arch Microbiol, 1977 Apr 1, 112(3), 271 - 6 The functioning of cytochrome b in the electron transport to furmarate in Propionibacterium freudenreichii and Propionibacterium pentosaceum; De Vries W et al.; Fumarase-free electron particles from Propionibacterium freudenreichii and P . pentosaceum were prepared by discontinuous sucrose gradient centrifugation, and the influence of 2-n-heptyl-4-hydroxy-quinoline-N-oxide (HQNO) and ultraviolet irradiation on the reduction of menaquinone and cytochrome b with L-lactate or glycerol-3-phosphate and the reoxidation by fumarate was studied . In the presence of HQNO the steady state reduction level of menaquinone during fumarate reduction was increased whereas the steady state reduction level of cytochrome b was decreased as compared with the reduction levels measured in the absence of HQNO . The steady state reduction level of menaquinone during electron transport to fumarate was not influenced by ultraviolet irradiation and the steady state reduction level of cytochrome b was decreased at increasing irradiation times . The data indicate that cytochrome b is involved in the electron transport to fumarate. Biochemistry, 1977 Feb 8, 16(3), 526 - 31 Biosynthesis of the dimethylbenzene moiety of riboflavin and dimethylbenzimidazole: evidence for the involvement of C-1 of a pentose as a precursor; Alworth WL et al.; The relative incorporations of specially labeled pyruvate, lactate, erythritol, D-erythrose, D-ribose, and D-glucose precursors into the dimethylbenzene carbon atoms of the 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole unit of vitamin B12 by Propionibacterium shermanii have been determined . The incorporation data provide information regarding the putative four-carbon biosynthetic unit which is involved in the formation of 6,7-dimethyl-8-ribityllumazine and which is the source of the eight dimethylbenzene carbon atoms of both 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole and riboflavin . The relative incorporations of the labeled lactate and pyruvate precursors are not consistent with either acetoin or 2,3-butanedione functioning as the four-carbon biosynthetic unit . The relative incorporations of the labeled hexose, pentose, and tetrose precursors indicate that the observed incorporation of C-1 of the pentose into the dimethylbenzene carbon atoms does not involve metabolism to a tetrose intermediate, but occurs more directly . It is concluded that the C-1 position of a pentose precursor is involved in the formation of the putative four-carbon biosynthetic unit. J Invest Dermatol, 1977 Feb, 68(2), 93 - 7 A reevaluation of fatty acids as inflammatory agents in acne; Puhvel SM et al.; The currently widely held theory that intrafollicular free fatty acids (FA) are the primary agents instigating inflammatory changes in acne is based on circumstantial evidence . There is no direct evidence that FA in physiologic concentrations are inflammatory . In the present study the quantities of FA present in isolated pilosebaceous ducts and in isolated comedones were analyzed . Using these values, the effect of FA on intracutaneous injection into human skin was investigated . The range of FA in 257 isolated pilosebaceous ducts from skin of the upper back of 10 male subjects was 0.19 to 2.43 mug, with an average of 0.89 +/- 0.75 mug of FA per duct . The mean FA content in 45 open comedones was 63.6 +/- 24.8 mug per comedone . Fatty acids for intracutaneous testing were isolated from human skin surface lipids and from hydrolyzed triglycerides purified from pooled isolated sebaceous glands . Twenty-six subjects received 100 mug of FA intracutaneously in the upper back . The response to FA injections could not be distinguished from the response to saline control injections . By 24 hr no erythema, induration, or any visible marks of inflammation were present in the skin of any of the subjects tested . At the histologic level a mild inflammatory infiltrate consisting perdominantly of lymphocytes was slightly more marked in the FA injection site than in the saline control injection site . Increasing the amount of FA injected to 500 mug still produced no visible inflammatory response in human skin . We conclude that intracutaneous injections of FA in physiologic concentrations do not produce more than a very mild inflammatory reaction in human skin and suggest that the role of Propionibacterium acnes in the pathogeneisis of acne may be more complex than merely as a source of intrafollicular lipases. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1977 Jan-Feb, 13(1), 16 - 23 {Role of ammonium nitrogen in the biogenesis of vitamin B12 by Propionibacterium shermanii}; Bykhovskii VIa et al.; The effect of different nitrogen sources on the biosynthesis of vitamin B12 ano porphyrins by suspensions of resting cells of Propionibacterium shermanii was investigated . In the absence of ammonium nitrogen vitamin B12 was not accumulated by the bacterial cell . This was also the case when its nitrogen containing precursor--delta-aminolevulinic acid was added to the incubation medium . The porphyrins biosynthesis was not changed . When amino acids and their amides were used as the sole nitrogen source, an intensive formation of vitamin B12 developed, if the medium contained aspartic acid, asparagine and cystein subjected to distinct deamination, and glutamine . The study of the composition of extracellular tetrapyrrole compounds showed an accumulation of corrinoil with free carboxyl groups in the incubation medium in the absence of ammonium salts . This corrinoid was identical to cobyrinic acid with respect to its spectral characteristics and behaviour during electrophoresis in phosphate buffer . Possible pathways of the involvement of ammonium nitrogen and glutamine in the biosynthesis of vitamin B12 and the role of amide groups in the binding of corrinoids with cell proteins are discussed. Microbiol Immunol, 1977, 21(1), 33 - 44 Immunological properties of Propionibacterium acnes . I . Potentiation and Suppression on antibody response to sheep and hamster erythrocytes in mice; Nagoya T et al.; Adjuvant activity of phenol-treated cells of Propionibacterium acnes C-7 in antibody response was investigated in ICR mice . Simultaneous administration (day 0) of P . acnes (i.p.) and sheep red blood cells (SRBC) (i.v.) enhanced the formation of direct plaque-forming cells (PFC) on days 2, and the formation of indirect PFC response on day 7 and thereafter . Conversely, pretreatment from 11 to 14 days before antigen injection suppressed markedly the antibody response . The potentiation and the suppression of immune response depended on doses of antigen and of P . acnes, the timing of adjuvant injection and the time of assay . The two opposite phenomena caused by P . acnes were also confirmed in antibody response against hamster red blood cells (HRBC) . Pretreatment with P . acnes 1 to 14 days before antigen injection suppressed markedly anti-HRBC antibody response, whereas P . acnes injected simultaneously with HRBC or one day after injection of the antigen induced prolongation of antibody response and the production of 2-mercaptoethanol-resistant antibody. J Biol Chem, 1976 Dec 25, 251(24), 7920 - 8 Steady state and exchange kinetics of pyruvate, phosphate dikinase from Propionibacterium shermanii; Milner Y et al.; Evidence is presented based on requirements for exchange in the partial reactions, initial velocity and exchange kinetics and product inhibition, that the pyruvate, phosphate dikinase reaction of propionibacteria occurs by a nonclassical Tri Uni Uni Ping Pong mechanism . The mechanism involves a pyrophosphoryl enzyme, a phosphoryl enzyme, and the free enzyme, and three functionally distinct and independent substrate sites . On the first site, there is pyrophosphorylation of the enzyme by ATP with subsequent release of AMP . The pyrophosphoryl moiety then reacts at the second site with Pi yielding the product PPi and the phosphoryl from of the enzyme . At the third site pyruvate is phosphorylated yielding P-enolpyruvate and the free enzyme . The three catalytic sites are proposed to be linked by a histidyl residue which functions as a pyrophosphoyrl- and phosphoryl-carrier between the three sites . This proposal is based on the following observations . (A) The patterns of the double reciprocal plots of the initial velocities were all parallel; (b) product inhibition between each pair of substrates and products of the three partial reactions were competitive, i.e . ATP against AMP, Pi against PPi, and pyruvate against P-enolpyruvate; (c) the other product inhibitions, with one exception, were noncompetitive as required by the nonclassical ping-pong mechanism; (d) ATP or P-enolpyruvate was required for the Pi in equilibrium PPi exchange reaction which is in accord with the participation of a pyrosphosphoryl or phosphoryl form of the enzyme in this exchange; (e) the ATP in equilibrium AMP exchange and pyruvate in equilibrium P-enolpyruvate exchange did not require additional substrates . In addition, the inhibition and participation in the exchange reactions of the alpha,beta and beta,gamma-methylene analogues of ATP and of the methylene analogue of inorganic pyrophosphate were investigated and the results were in accord with the proposed mechanism . The combined evidence provides a well documented example of a three site nonclassical Tri Uni Uni Ping Pong mechanism. Gann, 1976 Dec, 67(6), 797 - 804 Mouse strain differences in macrophage activation and anti-tumor activity induced by Propionibacterium acnes (anaerobic coryneforms); Ikeda H et al.; Effect of Propionibacterium acnes on macrophage activation and antitumor activity was examined in ddN and SL mice . (1) Carbon clearance was enhanced to the same extent by P . acnes treatment in both strains . (2) Number of peritoneal macrophages increased to the same extent by P . acnes treatment in both strains . (3) Adhesiveness of peritoneal macrophages, as demonstrated by inhibition or migration or an increase in spreading cells, was enhanced more efficiently in ddN than in SL mice P . acnes treatment . (4) Mice of both strains died in a similar patterns, when they were not pretreated in any way . The treatment with P . acnes conferred antitumor activity of a higher degree in ddN than in SL mice . (5) Peritoneal macrophages of ddN mice treated with P . acnes exhibited an antitumor activity in in vivo neutralization test . These results suggest that strain difference in augmentation of antitumor activity by P . acnes is ascribed to distinct sensitivity of macrophage functions to a stimulative effect of P . acnes in the mouse strains. Am J Med, 1976 Dec, 61(6), 935 - 8 Propionibacterium acnes: pathogen in central nervous system shunt infection . Report of three cases including immune complex glomerulonephritis; Beeler BA et al.; Propionibacterium acnes is a pleomorphic gram-positive anaerobic rod usually isolated as a contaminant from skin . We report three cases of P . acnes infection of central nervous system shunts for hydrocephalus . The organism was seen repeatedly on gram stain in a specimen of shunt fluid in all three cases; initially, it was regarded as a contaminant . In addition, two of the patients had precipitins to extracts of their organism . Serum from normal control subjects had no such precipitins . One of the patients had an immune-complex glomerulonephritis--an entity not previously associated with anaerobic organisms . All three patients recovered after removal of the shunt and treatment with antibiotics . P . acnes is a significant pathogen in patients with central nervous system shunts. Jpn J Microbiol, 1976 Oct, 20(5), 375 - 84 Immune response against hamster erythrocytes in the low-responder mouse strains . XI . Strain difference in the effects of various microbial adjuvants; Nomoto K et al.; Enhancing and suppressing effects of microbial adjuvants were studied in female mice of the C3H/He, AKR and SL strains . Propionibacterium acnes, Bordetella pertussis, BCG and yeast cell wall (YCW) were chosen as adjuvants . As antigens, we chose hamster erythrocytes (HRBC) which proved to be a weak antigen for mice . Adjuvants were given on day --7, day 0 or day 3, and HRBC were injected on day 0 . The results were as follows . 1) P . acnes facilitated IgM and IgG antibody production in AKR mice and suppressed IgM antibody production in SL mice, when given on day --7 . When P . acnes was given on day 0, they suppressed IgM antibody production in all of the strains used . 2) When B . pertussis was given on day 0, it exhibited enhancing effects on IgG antibody production in all of the strains and a suppressing effect on IgM antibody production in SL mice . 3) BCG suppressed IgM antibody production in all strains when given on day 0 . 4) YCW showed no influence on antibody production in any combination used in this work . 5) SL mice were very sensitive to suppressing effects by adjuvants . Strain differences in the expression of enhancing and suppressing effects by adjuvants appear to be under some control independent of antigen-specific immune response genes. J Clin Microbiol, 1976 Aug, 2(2), 104 - 10 Identification of Propionibacterium acnes and related organisms by precipitin tests with trichloroacetic acid extracts; Cummins CS; The serological identification of Propionibacterium acnes, P . granulosum, and P . avidum, using trichloroacetic acid extracts, is described . With antisera prepared against reference strains, the method has been tested on 142 strains recently isolated from human skin . All except two of the strains could be identified serologically, and there was excellent agreement between the serological results and the fermentation pattern of the strains . Two serological types of P . acnes and two of P . avidum were identified, but only one of P . granulosum. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1976 Jul-Aug, 12(4), 491 - 4 {Effect of porphyrins and their derivatives on biosynthesis of vitamin B 12 and the development of Propionibacterium shermanii}; Bykhovskii VIa et al.; The effect of uroporphyrin, coproporphyrin and their cobalt-containing derivatives on the biosynthesis of vitamin B12 and development of propionibacterium shermanii was studied . The compounds under study stimulated the vitamin synthesis by growing cultures and resting suspensions of these bacteria . Cobalt porphyrins as the sole source of cobalt were used in the vitamin B12 biosynthesis . An addition of cobalt porphyrins to the growing culture of propionic bacteria increased in accumulation of their biomass . Possible mechanisms of porphyrin involvement in the biosynthesis of vitamin B12 and the specific role of cobalt porphyrins in the bacterial activity are discussed. J Clin Microbiol, 1976 Jun, 3(6), 576 - 81 Differential quantitation of surface and subsurface bacteria of normal skin by the combined use of the cotton swab and the scrub methods; Evans CA et al.; By testing adjacent sites on the hypothenar eminence of the palm, enriched with bacteria by massaging the forehead, we found that the numbers of bacteria recovered from the skin surface by a wet cotton swab in 30 s were not significantly different from the numbers obtained by a brisk scrubbing with a blunted Teflon policeman for 120 s . This was true of aerobes (gram-positive cocci) and anaerobes (propionibacteria) . If the same site on the palm was swabbed two times for 15 s each time, 67 to 94% of the total recovered bacteria were obtained on the first swab . Differential localization of bacteria into surface and subsurface populations was accomplished by first swabbing a test skin site to assay the surface flora and then scrubbing the same site to test for subsurface organisms . On the palm the swab yielded more aerobes and anaerobes than did the subsequent scrub . On the forehead the scrub yielded three to eight times as many anaerobes as the preceding swab . In some tests gram-positive cocci were distributed on the forehead like propionibacteria (large excess in scrub specimen); in other tests their numbers were similar in the swab and scrub specimens or there was a large excess in the swab specimen . These results indicate that there was no substantial subsurface flora on the palm . On the forehead propionibacteria were predominantly in deeper locations in all tests; gram-positive cocci were variable: in some test sites they were largely at the surface, whereas at other sites a predominance of cocci was in subsurface locations. Infect Immun, 1976 May, 13(5), 1363 - 8 Importance of Actinomyces and certain gram-negative anaerobic organisms in the transformation of lymphocytes from patients with periodontal disease; Baker JJ et al.; Dental plaque deposits are known to be potent stimulants of lymphocyte transformation in patients with periodontal disease but not in normal subjects . Since plaque deposits consist mainly of whole bacteria, the cell walls of the most commonly found organisms in plaque were tested for their capacity to induce lymphocyte transformation . There was a direct correlation between the severity of peridontal disease and the amount of transformation induced by the cell walls of oral bacteria and by solubilized dental plaque . Cord blood leukocytes and lymphocytes from clinically normal people did not respond, which indicates that these stimulants are antigens rather than mitogens . Of the eleven bacteria tested, four members of the family Actinomycetaceae (Actinomyces viscosus, A . israelii, A . naeslundii, and Arachnia propionica), the related Propionibacterium acnes, and an anaerobic gram-negative anaerobic rod (27N) . The high prevalence of the former organisms in the mature dental plaque that forms around the gingival crevice area and the potent efficacy with which they stimulate lymphocytes indicates that Actinomyces and certain gram-negative anaerobes may be important etiological agents in chronic periodontal inflammation in man. J Neurosurg, 1976 May, 44(5), 580 - 4 Cerebrospinal fluid shunt infections with anaerobic diphtheroids (Propionibacterium species); Everett ED et al.; The clinical and laboratory findings in six cases of anaerobic diphtheroid infection of cerebrospinal fluid shunts are described . These organisms have been infrequently reported as a cause of shunt infections but our data indicate that such infections may be more common than currently appreciated . Propionibacterium species are common contaminants of cerebrospinal fluid specimens, but when isolated from the spinal fluid of a patient with a shunt who has symptoms and signs compatible with infection, the organism should not be dismissed as a contaminant . Fever was a constant finding frequently accompanied by signs of central nervous system dysfunction . Spinal fluid pleocytosis was usually limited to 1 to 200 cells and protein and sugar values were variable . The organisms grow slowly, therefore spinal fluid cultures should be held for at least 14 days before they are reported as negative. Jpn J Microbiol, 1976 Feb, 20(1), 17 - 25 Anaerobic coryneforms isolated from human bone marrow and skin . Chemical, biochemical and serological studies and some of their biological activities; Saino Y et al.; Eighteen isolates if anaerobic coryneforms from human bone marrow and skin and four type strains of Propionibacterium were studied chemically, biochemically and antigenically . All of the isolates were identified as Propionibacterium acnes; of the 18 isolates,16 belonged to sterotype I and two to serotype II . By means of gas liquid chromatography and mass spectral analysis, a large amount of iso-type fatty acids, such as iso-pentadecanoic and iso-heptadecanoic acids were detected in whole cells of isolates and type strains . Antitumor and adjuvant effects of the isolates and type strains were found to differ considerably among the strains . One of the isolates, P . acnes C-7, which showed potent biological activities was fractionated by hot phenol-water extraction . The resulting insoluble middle layer was found the most effective in tumor protection, adjuvant action in immune response and phagocytic activity in mice. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek, 1976, 42(3), 217 - 28 Lactate metabolism in Propionibacterium pentosaceum growing with nitrate or oxygen as hydrogen acceptor; Gent-Ruijters ML et al.; When anaerobic cultures of Propionibacterium pentosaceum were shifted to low dissolved-oxygen concentration (D.O.C.), acetate production from lactate diminished and propionate production stopped, whereas pyruvate accumulated and oxygen was consumed . Assuming that energy is generated in the electron transfer to oxygen, YATP values (g dry wt bacteria/mole ATP) of between 7.2 and 11.9 were calculated from molar growth yields and product formation . When oxidative phosphorylation in the electron transfer to oxygen was ignored, unreasonably high YATP values were obtained . From these results it is concluded that energy is indeed generated in the electron transfer to oxygen . However, synthesis of cytochrome b was strongly repressed by oxygen . Furthermore, synthesis of all catabolic enzymes studied was impaired in bacteria growing at low D.O.C . Thus, the anaerobic character of P . pentosaceum may be explained by the inhibition of synthesis of both cytochrome b and enzymes in the presence of oxygen . It was demonstrated that nitrate reductase is synthesized constitutively in P . pentosaceum . Synthesis of nitrate reductase was stimulated by nitrate and repressed by oxygen . Synthesis of fumarate reductase was also repressed by oxygen, whereas only a small effect of nitrate on this enzyme was observed . However, propionate formation is inhibited during growth with nitrate . The absence of propionate formation in the presence of oxygen and nitrate is explained by inavailability of NADH needed for the conversion of oxaloacetate into malate in the reductive pathway to succinate, so that succinate and propionate cannot be formed. Z Allg Mikrobiol, 1976, 16(2), 123 - 31 Inhibition of acetate and propionate formation upon aeration of resting cells of the anaerobic Propionibacterium shermanii: evidence of the Pasteur reaction; Schwartz AC et al.; When resting cell suspensions of the anaerobic P . shermanii were brought to an oxygen concentration of 0.64 mumoles/ml, acid formation was completely inhibited . The cells started to respire on the propionic acid previously accumulated furing anaerobiosis . Glucose consumption was concomitantly decreased to about 60 percent of the rate during anaerobiosis . As the viability of the cells was not affected by the transition to aerobic conditions, the changes observed upon aeration were ascribed to the regulatory properties of the Pasteur reaction . Damage inflicted by oxygen was encountered in the rapid inactivation of propionate respiration . This damage outlived the time of oxygenation, and was manifested during the subsequent anaerobiosis in the decreased activity to form propionate . This indicates that oxygen may inactivate one (or more) enzyme(s) involved in the metabolism of propionate . The viability of cells in buffer, and glucose-containing buffer, was found to be only insignificantly decreased by oxygen in the range from 0 to 500 mumoles of oxygen per g of wet cells. Acta Microbiol Pol, 1976, 25(3), 205 - 10 Utilization of lactose and production of corrinoids in selected strains of propionic acid bacteria in cheese-whey and casein media; Janicka I et al.; Comparative studies were carried out with 23 strains (14 species) of propionibacteria in two media-cheese-whey and casein . The degree of lactose fementation and the efficiency of the corrinoids synthesis were studied . Lactose fermentation showed great differences even within one species (e.g . 13.3% and 66.1% for various strains of P . shermanii) . The differences were particularly sharp in casein medium (0% or 100%) . The highest capacity for utilizing cheese-whey lactose (70--80%) was found in two strains of P . shermanii and P . petersonii and P . arabinosum . No definite correlation, however, was found either in the cheese-whey or in the casein medium, between the capability of lactose fermentation and the efficiency of the corrinoids . As the most technologically effective strains have been recognized P . shermanii 1, P . shermanii 566 and P . petersonii J. J Biol Chem, 1975 Nov 25, 250(22), 8690 - 5 Isolation and characterization of a pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase from Propionibacterium shermanii; O'Brien WE et al.; A pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase (pyrophosphate; D-fructose-6-phosphate-1-phosphotransferase) has been purified and characterized from extracts of Propionibacterium shermanii . The enzyme catalyzes the transfer of phosphate from pyrophosphate to fructose 6-phosphate to yield fructose-1,6-P2 and phosphate . This unique enzymatic activity was observed initially in Entamoeba histolytica (Reeves, R.E., South, D.J., Blytt, H.G., and Warren, L . G . (1974) J . Biol . Chem . 249, 7734-7741) . This is the third pyrophosphate-utilizing enzyme that these two diverse organisms have in common . The others are phosphoenolpyruvate carboxytransphosphorylase and pyruvate phosphate dikinase . The PPi-phosphofructokinase from P . shermanii is specific for fructose-6-P and fructose-1,6-P2, no other phosphorylated sugars were utilized . Phosphate could be replaced by arsenate . The Km values are: phosphate, 6.0 X 10(-4) M; fructose-1, 6-P2, 5.1 X 10(-5) M; pyrophosphate, 6.9 X 10(-5) M; and fructose-6-P, 1.0 X 10(-4) M . The S20w is 5.1 S . The molecular weight of the native enzyme is 95,000 . Sodium dodecyl sulfate electrophoresis of the enzyme showed a single band migrating with an Rf corresponding to a molecular weight of 48,000 . Extracts of P . shermanii have PPi-phosphofructokinase activity approximately 6 times greater than ATP-phosphofructokinase and 15 to 20 times greater than fructose diphosphatase activities . It is proposed that (a) PPi may replace ATP in the formation of fructose-1-6-P2 when the organism is grown on glucose and (b) when the organism is grown on lactate or glycerol the conversion of fructose-1,6-P2 to fructose-6-P during gluconeogenesis may occur by phosphorolysis rather than hydrolysis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 1975 Nov, 72(11), 4308 - 12 Structural properties of pyruvate carboxylases from chicken liver and other sources; Barden RE et al.; Varieties of pyruvate carboxylase {pyruvate: CO2 ligase (ADP-forming), EC 6.4.1.1} obtained from the livers of several species of vertebrates, including humans, all show the same basic structure . They are composed of large polypeptide chains of molecular weights ranging from 1.2 to 1.3 X 10(5) for the different varieties of the enzyme . The native form of the enzyme appears to be a tetramer with a molecular weight of about 5 X 10(5) . In the case of pyruvate carboxylase from chicken liver each polypeptide chain contains a biotin moiety, thus supporting the thesis that the tetramer contains four identical polypeptide chains . Pyruvate carboxylase from yeast appears to be basically similar to those from the vertebrate species and has a tetrameric structure . Each protomer contains a single polypeptide chain with a molecular weitht of 1.25 X 10(5) . In contrast, pyruvate carboxylase from two bacterial species, Pseudomonas citronellolis and Axotobacter vinelandii, appears to be a dimer with a molecular weight (2.5 X 10(5)) about half that of the animal and yeast species . As a further difference, each of the protomers of the bacterial enzymes contain two polypeptides of 6.5 and 5.4 X 10(5) molecular weight in case of the Pseudomonas enzyme . The larger of the two polypeptides contains the biotin moiety . The functional units of the bacterial enzyme thus appear to contain two polypeptides while that of the liver and yeast enzymes is made up of a single chain . Neither of these arrangements corresponds with those of other biotin enzymes whose structure has been extensively studied (acetyl-CoA carboxylases from liver or Excherichia coli, and transcarboxylase from Propionibacterium). J Invest Dermatol, 1975 Oct, 65(4), 382 - 4 Propionibacterium levels in patients with and without acne vulgaris; Leyden JJ et al.; Propionibacterium species were quantified on the foreheads and cheeks of persons with and without acne in three age groups: 11 to 15, 16 to 20, and 21 to 25 . Propionibacteria were virtually absent in the pubertal non-acne group compared to a geometric mean density of 114,800 per sq cm in the acne group . A similar sharp difference existed between the acne subjects and normals in the age range of 16 to 20 years: 85,800 organisms per sq cm compared to 588 per sq cm . Patients with acne and normal subjects over age 21 showed no difference in Propionibacterium levels . In acne patients, while there was a trend for lower levels, no significant difference was seen as the severity of inflammation increased. Med Microbiol Immunol (Berl), 1975 Sep 19, 161(4), 263 - 71 Studies on bacteriophages of Propionibacterium acnes; Jong EC et al.; With the help of adaptation experiments, 61 phage preparations out of 36 Propionibacterium acnes bacteriophages (32 isolated by us and 4 sent from abroad) were established . On the basis of their stability, spectrum of activity, and virulence, 13 phages were selected for phagetyping . 58 well-classified P . acnes strains were grouped into 7 phage-types . 7 strains of P . granulosum, two strains of P . avidum, and one yet ungroupable microserophilic propionibacterium strain were resistant to all 61 phages, even when tested in 100 X RTD . A combination of phagetyping with biotyping resulted in data especially useful for the differentiation of P . acnes. Infect Immun, 1975 Aug, 12(2), 398 - 403 Serological studies of Actinomyces israelii by crossed immunoelectrophoresis: taxonomic and diagnostic applications; Holmberg K et al.; Crossed immunoelectrophoresis (CIE) with intermediate gel was applied to the serological analysis of Actinomyces israelii to develop a test with high efficiency in the laboratory diagnosis of human actinomycosis and classification of A . israelii . Recently developed standard antigen-antibody systems for A . israelii by CIE were used as reference . The reference systems were based on standard preparations of cytoplasmic and whole cell-associated antigens of A . israelii and a standard immunoglobulin G pool purified from rabbit antisera to formalin-treated whole cells and cell lysates of A . israelii . The specificity of the standard antigens for A . israelii was evaluated in CIE studies by screening for antibodies to components of the antigens in rabbit antisera raised against related bacteria . The standard system for A . israelii based on cytoplasmic antigens formed species-specific precipitins whereas antisera raised against A . naeslundii and/or Propionibacterium acnes precipitated components of the other standard antigens . As a result of these analyses, the standard system for A . israelii based on 10 cytoplasmic antigens was used as reference for CIE studies to detect humoral antibodies to A . israelii in sera from nine patients with actinomycosis . All the sera from the patients formed at the time of diagnosis one or more precipitins in terms of the 10 reference precipitins . Up to five precipitins were found in single sera . Follow-up studies covering a period of one-half year after treatment showed a gradually decreased precipitin response in the course of time . In control sera from patients with newly diagnosed tuberculosis, nocardiosis, deep Candida infection, and aspergillosis, and in sera from healthy blood donors, no antibodies were detected with specificity for the reference antigens. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Jul-Aug, 44(4), 609 - 14 {Ribonucleotide reductase in Propionibacterium shermani}; Iordan EP et al.; The cell-free extract of Propionibacterium shermanii was found to contain B12-dependent ribonucleotide reductase . The extract of the cells grown under the conditions of the inhibited synthesis of vitamin B12 reduces ribonucleotides with the participation of B12-independent enzyme . The synthesis of B12-dependent apoenzyme of ribonucleotide reductase is partially maintained under these conditions . Both enzymes reduce preferably ribonucleoside diphosphates . The reducing agent of nucleotides in vitro is lipoic acid or dithiothreitol, in the B12-dependent pathway, and NADPH and thioredoxin, in the B12-independent pathway . Only B12-independent ribonucleotide reductase requires Mg2+ ions . Vitamin B12 in the coenzyme form inhibits the activity of B12-independent enzyme. J Gen Microbiol, 1975 May, 88(1), 36 - 48 Influence of nitrate on fermentation pattern, molar growth yields and synthesis of cytochrome b in Propionibacterium pentosaceum; Van Gent-Ruijters ML et al.; Under anaerobic conditions, Propionibacterium pentosaceum reduces nitrate to nitrite until nitrate is exhausted from the medium when nitrite is converted into N2 or N2O . In the presence of nitrate, fermentation patterns for lactate, glycerol and pyruvate were different from those obtained during anaerobic growth without an inorganic electron acceptor . In the presence of these substrates, a drastic decrease in propionate formation was observed, some pyruvate accumulated during growth with lactate, and acetate was produced from glycerol . Acetate production from lactate and pyruvate was not influenced by the presence of nitrate . Furthermore, CO2 was produced by citric acid cycle activity . The fermentation pattern during nitrite reduction resembled that of P . pentosaceum grown anaerobically without an inorganic electron acceptor . Nitrits has a toxic effect, since bacteria inoculated into a medium with 9 mM-nitrite failed to grow . The cytochrome spectrum of anaerobically grown P . pentosaceum was similar with and without nitrate . In membrane fractions of bacteria grown anaerobically with nitrate, cytochrome b functioned in the transfer of electrons from lactate, glycerol I-phosphate and NADH to nitrate . Molar growth yeilds were increased in the presence of nitrate, indicating an increased production of ATP . This could be explained by citric acid cycle activity, and by ocidative phosphorylation coupled to nitrate reduction . Assuming that I mol ATP is formed in the electron transfer from lactate or glycerol I-phosphate to nitrate, and that 2 mol ATP are formed in the electron transfer from NADH to nitrate, YATP values (g dry wt bacteria/mol ATP) were obtained of between 5-0 and 12-6 . The higher YATP values were similar to those obtained during anaerobic growth without an inorganic electron acceptor . This supports the assumptions about the efficiency of oxidative phosphorylation for electron transport to nitrate . Low YAPT values were found when high concentrations of nitrite (15 to 50 mM) accumulated, and were probably due to the toxic effect of nitrite. Arch Microbiol, 1975 Mar 10, 102(3), 261 - 73 The electron transport system of the anaerobic Propionibacterium shermanii: cytochrome and inhibitor studies; Schwartz AC et al.; 1 . Electron transport particles obtained from cell-free extracts of Propionibacterium shermanii by centrifugation at 105000 times g for 3 hrs oxidized NADH, D,L-lactate, L-glycerol-3-phosphate and succinate with oxygen and, except for succinate, with fumarate, too . 2 . Spectral investigation of the electron transport particles revealed the presence of cytochromes b, d and o, and traces of cytochrome alpha1 and a c-type cytochrome . Cytochrome b was reduced by succinate to about 50%, and by NADH, lactate or glycerol-3-phosphate to 80--90% . 3 . The inhibitory effects of amytal and rotenone on NADH oxidation, but not on the oxidation of the other substrates, indicated the presence of the NADH dehydrogenase complex, or "site I region", in the electron transport system of P . shermanii . 4 . NQNO inhibited substrate oxidations by oxygen and fumarate, as well as equilibration of the flavoproteins of the substrate dehydrogenases by way of menaquinone . The inhibition occurred at low concentrations of the inhibitor and reached 80--100%, depending on the substrate tested . The site of inhibition of the respiratory activity was located between menaquinone and cytochrome b . In addition, inhibition of flavoprotein equilibration suggested that NQNO acted upon the electron transfer directed from menaquinol towards the acceptor to be reduced, either cytochrome b or the flavoproteins, which would include fumarate reductase . 5 . In NQNO-inhibited particles, cytochrome b was not oxidized by oxygen-free fumarate, but readily oxidized by oxygen . It was concluded from this and the above evidence that the branching-point of the electron transport chain towards fumarate reductase was located at the menaquinone in P . shermanii . It was further concluded that all cytochromes were situated in the oxygen-linked branch of the chain, which formed a dead end of the system under anaerobic conditions . 6 . Antimycin A inhibited only oxygen-linked reactions of the particles to about 50% at high concentrations of the inhibitor . Inhibitors of terminal oxidases were inactive, except for carbon monoxide. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Mar-Apr, 11(2), 179 - 84 {Effect of nucleotide containing corrinoids on vitamin B 12 synthesis in Propionibacterium shermanii}; Bykhovsky VY et al.; The influence of B12-CN, B12-OH, coenzyme B12, factor III and factor B on the synthesis of vitamin B12 and porphyrins by different strains of P . shermanii was investigated . Neither compound inhibited the development of propionic bacteria or suppressed porphyrin formation . All nucleotide containing analogues of vitamin B12 produced a strong repressive effect on the synthesis of corrinoid compounds regardless of the modifications in the upper and lower cobalt ligands . Factor B containing no nucleotide moiety did not show this effect . It is suggested that the nucleotide moiety of the vitamin B12 molecule is responsible for the binding of vitamin to protein aporepressor. J Biol Chem, 1975 Feb 10, 250(3), 927 - 33 Purification of the subunits of transcarboxylase by affinity chromatography on avidin-sepharose; Berger M et al.; Transcarboxylase consists of a central 12 SH subunits each of which is linked to the central subunit by two similar to 1.3 SE biotin carboxyl carrier proteins . The subunits from dissociated transcarboxylase have been difficult to isolate because conditions which stabilize them also promote their reassociation to the intact enzyme . In this paper, we describe the use of avidin-Sepharose to adsorb the enzyme from crude extracts or partially purified transcarboxylase of propionibacteria . After removing impurities by washing the column with phosphate buffer at pH 6.5, in which the transcarboxylase is stable, the enzyme is dissociated first by elution at pH 8 yielding a fraction containing mostly 12 SH subunit which can be rapidly stabilized against dissociation to 6 SH without the problem of reconstitution because the 1.3 SE and most of the 5 SE subunits are not eluted . The second elution is at pH 9 which yields the 5 SE subunit by dissociation from the 1.3 SE biotin subunit and the 1.3 SE subunit remains bound to the avidin . The 12 SH and 5 SE subunits are further purified by glycerol density gradient centrifugation or by chromatography on Bio-Gel . Very active enzyme can be reconstituted from these subunits upon the addition of the 1.3 SE subunit. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Jan-Feb, 44(1), 11 - 5 {Oxidative phosphorylation in Propionibacterium}; Briukhacheva NL et al.; Oxidative phosphorylation during electron transport in the respiratory chain was found in two propionic bacteria, P . shermanii and P . petersonii . Its effectiveness, with oxygen as the terminal acceptor of electrons, was higher in P . petersonii, a more aerobic culture, than in P . shermanii . Oxidative phosphorylation with the participation of the electron transport chain was not found in P . petersonii in the absence of oxygen . Oxidative phosphorylation can take place together with the reactions of propionic fermentation in P . shermanii upon a small rearrangement of the respiration chain (if fumarate reductase is substituted for cytochrome oxidase). J Invest Dermatol, 1975 Jan, 64(1), 42 - 6 Persistent individual differences in the bacterial flora of the skin of the forehead: numbers of propionibacteria; Evans CA; The bacterial flora of the central area of the forehead of 48 adults was examined by a standardized swabbing procedure to determine the extent of individual variation . Propionibacteria were the most abundant organisms on most subjects . Their numbers per cm-2 of skin ranged from fewer than 6 to 1,100,000 . Seventeen subjects had more than 100,000 and 16 subjects yielded fewer than 10,000 . Six had fewer than 1,000 . Differences with respect to sex and age were not statistically significant . Coagulase-negative cocci numbered from 25 to 75,000 per cm-2 . There was no statistically significant correlation between numbers of propionibacteria and numbers of cocci . In order to distinguish trivial or transient individual differences from those of a more fundamental nature, 16 subjects were examined four times at intervals of several months with a total elapsed time of from 329 days to 523 dyas and a median of 385 days . Eight subjects were representative of the upper third and 8 the lower third of the population with respect to numbers of propionibacteria in the initial survey . Geometric mean values for propionibacteria per cm-2 of skin in the measurements of subjects with a rich population ranged from 152,686 to 280,867 . Corresponding figures for the subjects with a sparse population were 1,215 to 3,639 . Comparing geometric means by the t-test yielded p values of less than .001 in the second and fourth measurements and less than .01 in the third . It is concluded that a rich or a sparse population of propionibacteria is a stable individual characteristic of the skin of the forehead. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek, 1975, 41(1), 1 - 11 Some characteristics of Anaerovibrio lipolytica a rumen lipolytic organism; Prins RA et al.; Strains of Anaerovibrio lipolytica isolated from sheep- and cow-rumen contents on a linseed oil -- rumen fluid -- agar medium fermented ribose, glycerol and DL-lactate . Fermentation products from glycerol were propionate and succinate, while ribose, fructose and DL-lactate were fermented mainly to acetate, propionate and carbon dioxide . Propionate is formed in this organism by the dicarboxylic acid pathway similarly as in propionibacteria . Measurements of the rate of lipolysis by pure cultures suggest that the organism may play an important role in the lipolytic activity of rumen contents of sheep . The demonstrated fact that the cell-free lipase excreted in the culture medium can easily be adsorbed on particulate matter in autoclaved rumen fluid may explain the absence of free lipase in clarified rumen liquor. Appl Microbiol, 1975 Jan, 29(1), 74 - 80 Beta-galactosidase of Propionibacterium shermanii; Hartley JC et al.; Ten strains of Propionibacterium shermanii were tested for beta-galactosidase (beta-gal) activity . Of these ten strains, five yielded enhanced enzyme activity when cell suspensions were treated with toluene-acetone; on solvent treatment, the remaining five lost a considerable portion of the activity found in whole-cell suspensions . By using a strain yielding decreased activity upon solvent treatment, explanations for the loss in activity were sought through assays for possible alternative beta-galactoside utilization mechanisms . When this strain was assayed for beta-D-phosphogalactoside galactohydrolase by using orthonitrophenyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside-6-P04 as a substrate, the activity was wither lower or indiffernt as compared with beta-gal activity determined simultaneously . Cell suspensions of P . shermanii 7 and 22 (strains chosen for further work) grown separately on the individual substrates (lactose, glucose, galactose, and sodium lactate) did not show significant differences in beta-gal activity . Optimal temperature for beta-gal activity in untreated and toluene-acetone-treated cell suspensions of strain 7 was 52 C . With strain 22, of the temperatures tested, maximal activity in untreated cell suspensions was noted at 58 C and with solvent-treated cells at 32 C . In the cell-free extract (CFE) system, both strains exhibited maximal activity at 52 C . Optimal pH for untreated and solvent-treated cell suspensions of both strains was around 7.5 . In the P . shermanii 22 CFE system, maximal activity occurred at pH 7.0; pH had very little effect on enzyme activity in P . shermanii 7 CFE . Sodium or potassium phosphate buffers in the assay system yielded the best activity . In the CFE system of these two strains, Mn2+ was definitely stimulatory, but in untreated and solvent-treated cell systems of these strains presence or absence of Mn2+ in the assay system had variable effects on enzyme activity . Maximal beta-gal activity was noted in P . shermanii 7 cells harvested after 28 h of growth at 32 C in sodium lactate broth . Sulfhydryl-group blocking agents inhibited enzyme activity in P . shermanii 22 CFE; the inhibition was partly reversed by dithiothreitol.
|
© 2005
Transgalactic Ltd (manufacturer of Bioscreen C software) |
Privacy Statement | P.O. Box
1393, 00101 Helsinki, Finland,
Last modified: May 25, 2005
| ||||||
