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| Mycopathologia, 1975 Dec 31, 57(3), 155 - 64 Distributional patterns of mesophilous and thermophilous microfungi in two Bahamian soils; Gochenaur SE; This study focuses on the characteristics displayed by mesophilous and thermophilous microfungal populations occurring in two tropical monodominant plant communities, a Cocos nucifera grove and a Casuarina equisetifolia forest, that provide distinctly different edaphic conditions . The mesophilous population sampled at 25 degrees C by the dilution plate method and the thermophilous population that developed on soil plates incubated at 45 degrees C consisted of 1693 isolates representing 60 species and 29 genera and 8887 isolates representing 20 species and 10 genera, respectively . The mesophilous propagules averaged 9,990 per gram dry soil in the coconut grove that lacks a litter layer, is low in moisture and organic matter and is subjected to high solar irradiation . The population was characterized by the prevalence of aspergilli and dematiaceous-sphaeropsidaceous forms and the near absence of mucoraceous isolates . Ascomycetes were common . The only widespread taxa were the three species, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium chysogenum, and Cladosporium cladosporioides . Species diversity was high and 73% of the isolates were cellulolytic . In the casuarina forest, adequate moisture and organic matter and a protecting litter layer provide a mesic environment . The mean number of mesophilous fungi per gram dry soil was 32,800 . This figure is considerably lower than ones reported for mesic temperate communities and may be due to more rapid propagule removal through accelerated microfaunal and microbial activity . An abundance of mucoraceous and moniliaceous isolates and penicillia, and the rarity of aspergilli, dematiaceous-sphaeropsidaceous forms and ascomycetes characterize the population . The infrequency of aspergilli is thought to be due to their poor competitive ability . Eight species, Absidia cylindrospora, Penicillium notatum, Pestalotia cocculi?, Cylindrocarpon heteronema, Gliocladium roseum, Trichoderma viride, Paecilomyces marquandii, and Penicillium funiculosum were widespread in the area . Species diversity equaled that observed in mesic temperate communities . Less than one third of the isolates were cellulolytic . Phytopathogens were common, a feature characteristic of tropical populations . Thermophilous fungi averaged 33 per gram dry soil in the casuarina forest and increased to 943 per gram in the insolated soil of the coconut grove . Thermotolerant forms (94% of the isolates) were abundant and were principally species of Aspergillus and Chaetomium . Thermophilic fungi werur species, Ch . osmaniae, Ch . medusarum, Ch . sulphureum, and Thielavia arenaria, appear to be new records for western hemisphere soils. Mycopathologia, 1975 Dec 23, 57(2), 63 - 72 {Comparison of growth and morphological differentiation of 22 strains of Emmonsia Ciferri et Montemartini, 1959, agent of adiasporomycosis, in different temperatures}; Boisseau-Lebreuil MT; The comparative study of the responses of 22 strains of Emmonsia to different temperatures between 5 degrees and 40 degrees C allowed us to confirm the existence of thermophilic and non-thermophilic strains . 11 strains composed a very homogeneous non-thermophilic group: their growth, maximal at 20-25 degress C was almost completely inhibited above 30 degrees and they produced characteristic adiaspores at 35 degrees . The remaining 11 strains composed a thermophilic group: their growth was maximal at 25 degrees except for 57 (30-35 degrees), the growth of U.A.M.H . 139 was inhibited at 35 degrees, the others were inhibited at 40 degrees except for three which still continued to develop slowly . Microscopically they produced more or less degenerate chlamydospores at 40 degrees and few adiaspores. J Gen Microbiol, 1975 Dec, 91(2), 383 - 90 Stability of protein and ribonucleic acid in Bacillus stearothermophilus; Coultate TP et al.; The turnover of protein in a prototrophic strain of Bacillus stearothermophilus during exponential growth in a salts medium with glucose or succinate as carbon source was about 4 %/h and in a richer nutrient broth medium about 23 %/h . Protein degradation under non-growing conditions conformed to a similar pattern . The turnover of RNA (non-messenger) was about 1 %/h in salts medium and about 9 %/h in nutrient broth . The turnover of protein and RNA in the thermophile is thus moderate rather than massive . This conclusion was confirmed by measurement of the decay of a specific enzyme, isocitrate lyase, in the prototroph and of the overall protein turnover in a non-prototrophic strain of B . stearothermophilus . The half-lives of a number of enzyme systems in intact cells of the prototrophic thermophile at its optimum growth temperature showed some variation but indicated a significant rate of inactivation . Such decay of protein in vivo apparently accounts for the moderate protein turnover observed during growth. J Bacteriol, 1975 Dec, 124(3), 1077 - 83 Metabolism of phenol and cresols by Bacillus stearothermophilus; Buswell JA; An obligate thermophilic strain of Bacillus stearothermophilus, strain PH24, isolated from industrial sediment by elective culture, grew readily at 55 C on phenol or on one of the isomers of cresol as the major carbon source . Intact cells grown in the presence of phenol, o-cresol, m-cresol, or p-cresol were induced to oxidize, without lag, these substrates together with catechol, 3-methylcatechol, and 4-methylcatechol . Cell extracts prepared from B . stearothermophilus PH24 after growth in the presence of phenol converted phenol to catechol with a concomitant uptake of 1 mol of oxygen per mol of substrate in reaction mixtures supplemented with reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide . These preparations also catalyzed the oxidation of o-cresol to 3-methylcatechol and of m-cresol and p-cresol to 4-methylcatechol . Enzyme activity was inhibited by 1 mM p-chloromercuribenzoate and by 0.1 mM 0-phenanthroline . Catechol and the corresponding methylcatechol intermediates were further dissimilated by cell extracts of phenol-grown cells via the meta-cleavage route to yield 2-hydroxymuconic semialdehyde and the respective methylated derivatives. Biochem J, 1975 Dec, 151(3), 527 - 42 The substrate specificity of thermomycolase, an extracellular serine proteinase from the thermophilic fungus Malbranchea pulchella var . sulfurea; Stevenson KJ et al.; The specificity of thermomycolase toward glucagon and the oxidized A and B chains of insulin was investigated . Extensive digestion of glucagon occurred when conducted at pH 7.0 and 45 degrees C for 40 min, whereas hydrolysis of only three peptide bonds occurred at pH 7.0 and 28 degrees C for 5 min . A similar situation was observed for the oxidized B chain of insulin, which exhibited only a single major cleavage after 5 min at 25 degrees C . No well-defined specificity for particular amino acid residues was evident, but ready hydrolysis of peptide bonds occurred within sequences containing non-polar residues . This endoproteinase must therefore possess an extended hydrophobic binding site for polypeptides . Thermomycolase hydrolysed acetylalanylalanylalanine methyl ester and elastin-Congo Red at 22 and 8.5 times the rate of porcine elastase respectively . A limited degradation of native collagen and significant hydrolysis of benzyloxycarbonyl-Gly-Pro-Leu-Gly-Pro were suggestive of some collagenase-like activity . No keratinase activity was apparent. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Nov-Dec, 44(6), 993 - 8 {Directed biosynthesis of proteolytic enzymes in Actinomyces thermovulgaris}; Vygornykh SN et al.; The biosynthesis of proteolytic enzymes in the thermophilic culture of Actinomyces thermovulgaris, strain T-54, was directed by changing the composition of the medium and the temperature of cultivation . A temperature of 40 degrees C is optimal for the growth and production of neutral and alkaline proteases . The maximum activity of acid proteases was found during the growth on a complex medium at 30 degrees C . An increase of temperature to 50 degrees C during the cultivation of the microorganism on a chemically defined medium resulted in its secondary growth and a sharp rise in the activity of alkaline and neutral proteases. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Nov-Dec, 11(6), 862 - 8 {Effect of products of thermophilous methane fermentation on the fermentation of fruit must by Saccharomyces vini}; Mikhlin ED et al.; Experiments were carried out to study the effect of extracts from products of thermophilous methane fermentation at a dose of 0.7+2.0 ml/100 ml on the proliferation and fermentation activity of yeast Saccharomyces vini of the Yablochnaya-7 and Vishnevaya-33 race during their cultivation in the Hansen medium and in the apple and cranberry must with a normal and elevated content of sugar and acid . In some experiments the must was enriched in (NH4)2HPO4 at a dose of 0.3 g/l . Additions of small amounts of products of thermophilous methane fermentation accelerated fermentation of fruit musts with a normal sugar content and to a greater extent musts with an increased sugar content (27%) . In the must enriched in (NH4)2HPO4 an almost complete (over 98%) fermentation of sugar developed for 27 days . In the must with an increased acidity (due to citric acid added to bring titrable acidity to 25 g/l) additions of the preparation also accerlerated the begining of the fermentation and increased its intensity. Appl Microbiol, 1975 Nov, 30(5), 821 - 4 Identification of a component of crystalline egg albumin bactericidal for thermophilic aerobic sporeformers; Ashton DH et al.; During an investigation of the effect of basic and acidic proteins on the growth of thermophilic aerobic sporeformers, crystalline egg albumin was found to be strongly bactericidal . This finding was uncharacteristic of acidic proteins . The bactericidal fraction was heat sensitive and separated from the non-bactericidal albumin fraction during gel filtration on Sephadex G-75 . Cells of Micrococcus lysodeikticus and Bacillus stearothermophilus were lysed rapidly by the bactericidal component, leading to its tentative identification as lysozyme . The bactericidal substance possessed an electrophoretic mobility on polyacrylamide gel containing sodium dodecyl sulfate identical to that of crystalline egg white lysozyme . Users of crystalline egg albumin are cautioned that commerical preparations may be contaminated with lysozyme . Destruction of the thermophilic aerobes by lysozyme should be considered when performing counts on egg products. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1975 Nov, 56(5), 364 - 80 Experimental production of granulomatous pneumonitis . Comparison of immunological and morphological sequelae with particulate and soluble antigens administered via the respiratory route; Salvaggio J et al.; Rabbits were sensitized with either a soluble protein antigen (BSA) or a particulate thermophilic actinomycete antigen (Micropolyspora faeni) via the respiratory route, followed by monitoring of sequential morphologic changes and the humoral plus cellular immunologic response . Primary respiratory tract sensitization with BSA resulted in a humoral anti-BSA response, Arthus and delayed skin reactivity, and in some cases specific antigen-induced alveolar macrophage migration inhibition, all in the absence of pulmonary lesions . Lesions characterized by mild multifocal perivascular mononuclear cell infiltrates in the lungs developed only after secondary BSA aerosol challenge . In contrast to these findings, "primary" respiratory tract sensitization with M . faeni particulate antigen in saline solution resulted in the gradual development of extensive and progressive pulmonary interstitial and alveolar mononuclear cell infiltrates . These lesions were uniformly associated with specific serum precipitating antibody and delayed skin reactivity . Alveolar macrophage migration was significantly inhibited by Micropolyspora faeni in virtually of these animals . These results, while not excluding a primary irritant effect or Type II or III alergic tissue injury, suggest a role for delayed (cell-mediated) hypersensitivity in the pathogenesis of particulate actinomycete-induced pulmonary lesions . They also indicate that primary immunization with soluble purified protein antigens via the respiratory route can lead to systemic humoral and cell-mediated immunity without production of pulmonary lesions. J Biochem (Tokyo), 1975 Nov, 78(5), 955 - 67 Studies on a thermophilic RNA polymerase which is active only on poly d(A-T) and poly dAdT; Date T et al.; Two types of RNA polymerases {EC 2.7.7.6}, polymerases A and B, exist in thermophilic bacteria, Thermus thermophilus HB8 . Polymerase B is apparently like the core enzyme of polymerase A but is active only when an alternating copolymer of deoxyadenylic and deoxythymidylic acids (poly d(A-T)) or a mixture of homopolymers of deoxyadenylic acid and deoxythymidylic acid (poly dAdT) is used as a template . Polymerase B was further characterized to elucidate its relation to polymerase A and to determine why it is inactive on natural DNA's . 1 . Polymerase B did not show pyrophosphate exchange activity . Dinucleoside monophosphates did not activate the RNA-synthesizing activity . The results suggested that polymerase B had no initiation and presumably no elongation activities . 2 . Polymerase B had about 6 times greater affinity to DNA than polymerase A . The binding of polymerase B to DNA was, however, reversible . The complex of DNA with polymerase A was stable and the polymerase was not removed from the initial complex even when a large amount of DNA was added . 3 . E . coli sigma subunit could not stimulate the activity of polymerase B toward DNA's . 4 . Polymerase B could utilize poly d(A-T) and poly dAdT as templates, but could not use Bacillus cereus DNA though the structure is reported to be similar to that of poly d(A-T). Biokhimiia, 1975 Nov-Dec, 40(6), 1237 - 45 {Comparative study of glutamate dehydrogenases of Chlorella}; Shatilov VR et al.; The kinetic properties of the constitutive double specific glutamate dehydrogenase (NAD(P)--GDH) and the inducible NADP-specific glutamate dehydrogenase (NADP--GDH) of Chlorella pyrenoidosa Pringsheim 82T (thermophilic strain) in a deaminating reaction have been studied . NAD(P)-GDH behaves in a deamination as a Michaelis-Menten enzyme . NADP-GDH displays some lag-period before a steady-state phase . The duration of this lag depends on a substrate concentration . Besides that, an effect of all the substrates on a heat inactivation of both GDH and a product inhibition have been studied . All the substrates except the reduced co-factors protect effectively GDH from the heat inactivation, especially the thermolabille NADP-GDH . On the contrary, NAD(P)-H promote the heat inactivation of both GDH . The product inhibition analysis shows that the inducible NADP-GDH acts in vivo as a synthetic enzyme . In the previous paper (V . R . Shatilov et all., 1974, Dokl . Acad . Nauk USSR, 216,223) it was shown for the constitutive GDH that p-CMB strongly inhibited a desamination and slightly (if any) affect an amination . It this paper it is shown that action of p-CMB on the amination depends on the presence of NAD+ (not NADP+ or L-glutamate) . p-CMB and NAD+ affect tha amination in a strongly sunergetic manner . Some suggestions about the intracellular localization of chlorella GDH are made. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Nov-Dec, 11(6), 829 - 33 {Preparation of proteolytic enzymes from the thermophilous actinomycete Actinomyces thermovulgaris str . T-54}; Vybornykh SN et al.; A preparation with a high proteolytic activity has been obtained by acetone precipitation from the culture liquid filtrate of the thermophilous actinomycete Actinomyces thermovulgaris str . T-54 . The proteolytic (caseinolytic), fibrinolytic and thrombolytic activity of the preparation is comparable with that of trypsin and far superior to that of fibrinolysine . The preparation is stable at pH 5.0=9.5 and inactivated in the acid zone . The study of pH dependent proteolytic activity has shown acid, neutral and alkaline proteases in the preparation . It is relatively thermostable, and is completely inactivated for 10 min at 90 degrees . It is suggested that the preparation contains four enzymes or four enzymic groups that are different in their temperature sensitivity. J Biol Chem, 1975 Oct 10, 250(19), 7917 - 23 Purification and properties of a dicyclohexylcarbodiimide-sensitive adenosine triphosphatase from a thermophilic bacterium; Sone N et al.; 1 . A stable ATPase complex with sensitivity to dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (TFo-F1) was purified from the membranes of the thermophilic aerobic bacterium PS3, by ion exchange chromatography in the presence of Triton X-100 . 2 . The ATPase of TFo-F1 was maximal at 70 degrees at pH 8.6 and was stable after monomerization in 4 M urea and 0.5% Triton X-100 at 25 degrees . The activity was dependent on Mg2+, Co2+, or Mn2+, and it became insensitive to dicyclohexylcarbodiimide when Ca2+ or Cd2+ was added instead . 3 . TFo-F1 required P-lipids of this bacterium contained branched fatty acyl groups but no unsaturated groups and were stable against oxidation and heat . 4 . Studies by electron microscopy, gel electrophoresis, and use of anti-ATPase antibody and {3H}acetyl-ATPase indicated that the TFo-F1 complex was composed of an ATPase moiety (TF1, five different subunits) and a hydrophobic moiety (TFo, three different subunits . TFo conferred TF1 with sensitivity to dicyclohexylcarbodiimide . 5 . Vesicles catalyzing 32Pi-ATP exchange and ATP-driven enhancement of fluorescence of anilinonaphthalene sulfonate were reconstituted by dialyzing pure TFo-F1 and P-lipids together, and were active even at 50-75 degrees . The vesicles reconstituted from TFo-F1 and bacterial P-lipids were more stable than those reconstituted from TFo-F1 and soybean P-lipids. J Biol Chem, 1975 Oct 10, 250(19), 7910 - 6 A highly stable adenosine triphosphatase from a thermophillie bacterium . Purification, properties, and reconstitution; Yoshida M et al.; 1 . A highly stable ATPase (TF1) was purified to a monodispersed state from the membranes of a thermophilic bacterium PS3 . Its molecular weight was 380,000, and it was composed of five subunits alpha, beta, gamma, sigma', and sigma with molecular weights of 56,000, 53,000, 32,000, 15,500, and 11,000, respectively . 2 . TF1 was stable against dissociating agents such as 5.5 M urea and 4.0 M LiCl, organic solvents, such as 60% acetone, heavy metals, and detergents . Low concentrations of all these agents stimulated its activity at 60 degrees . 3 . TF1 was not cold-labile and showed a maximal activity at 70 degrees . Its CD spectrum revealed that its conformation changed between 81 and 96 degrees, and that its contents of alpha helices and beta structures were 27.3 and 12.8%, respectively, at 75 degrees . 4 . TF1 was completely dissociated by treatment with dodecyl sulfate at 60 degrees and then with 7.1 M urea . The dissociated TF1 was reconstituted by treatment with Dowex 1-X2, and then dialysis . 5 . {3H}Acetyl-TF1 bound to TF1-depleted membranes . TF1 only catalyzed 32Pi-ATP exchange and showed sensitivity to inhibitors of energy transfer when bound to the membranes . 6 . A hydrophobic membrance component (TFo) was isolated which rendered TF1 sensitive to inhibitors of energy transfer . It was composed of three subunits (with molecular weights of 19,000, 13,500, and 5,400) and P-lipids. J Bacteriol, 1975 Oct, 124(1), 279 - 84 Development of defined and minimal media for the growth of Bacillus stearothermophilus; Rowe JJ et al.; Defined media, both solid and liquid, that support good growth of Bacillus stearothermophilus 1503 have been developed . Data are presented which indicate that manganese is required at relatively high concentrations for growth in a defined liquid medium . Phosphate concentrations higher than 5 times 10(-3) M have been shown to inhibit colony formation on solid media . Maximum viable counts of approximately 10(9) colony-forming units per ml were obtained in both the defined and minimal liquid media . Glucose, fructose, sucrose, glycerol, and starch support the growth of this obligate thermophile in the defined media, whereas citrate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinate, fumarate, malate, acetate, and lactate do not . The described media have been utilized to isolate several amino acid-requiring mutants of B . stearothermophilus. Can J Microbiol, 1975 Oct, 21(10), 1535 - 40 Temperature and pH optima for 21 species of thermophilic and thermotolerant fungi; Rosenberg SL; A glucose-containing mineral medium supplemented with 0.01% yeast extract is described upon which all the species of thermophilic and thermotolerant fungi tested will grow . Thirteen of the 21 species do not require the yeast extract supplement for growth . Using this solid, supplemented mineral medium, the pH and temperature optima for growth of all strains were measured . No correlation was found between temperature optimum and pH optimum among members of the group tested. J Biol Chem, 1975 Sep 10, 250(17), 6963 - 8 Omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids in acidophilic thermophilic bacteria . Studies on their presence, structure, and biosynthesis using precursors labeled with stable isotopes and radioisotopes; Oshima M et al.; Omega-Cyclohexyl undecanoic acid and omega-cyclohexyl tridecanoic acid were found in 10 strains of acido-thermophilic bacteria isolated from different Japanese hot springs . These unusual fatty acids were found in the esterified form in glyceride type complex lipids and constituted 74 to 93% of the total fatty acids in the bacteria . The fatty acids other than omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids found were 14-methyl hexadecanoic acid (3 to 15%) and 15-methyl hexadecanoic acid (1 to 6%), and trace amounts of straight chain and methyl-branched tetra- and penta-decanoic acids . Biosynthesis of omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids increased with increase in the concentration of glucose in the culture medium . The metabolism of omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids was studied using deuterium-labeled precursors by mass fragmentation analysis . The deuterium of {2-D}glucose was specifically incorporated into position 2 of the cyclohexyl ring of the fatty acids, indicating that the ring was synthesized from the glucose molecule . Radioactivity was efficiently incorporated into the omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids from labeled glucose, shikimate, and cyclohexyl carboxylate . These findings indicate that omega-cyclohexyl fatty acids are synthesized with glucose through shikimic acid and probably cyclohexyl carboxylyl-CoA derivative as the intermediates. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Sep-Oct, 44(5), 855 - 62 {Thermophilic and thermotolerant bacteria that assimilate methane}; Malashenko IuR et al.; Microorganisms assimilating methane at temperatures above 40 degrees C were isolated from various natural sources: ooze, mud, waste water of coal pits . The bacteria are obligate methylotrophs and are represented by two groups: (a) thermotolerant, growing at 37 to 45 degrees C; and (b) thermophilic, growing at 50 to 62 degrees C . The selective factor used to isolate various physiological forms of methylotrophs is corresponding temperatures of growth which allow to isolate from the same substrate meso-, thermotolerant, and thermophilic forms . Morphological and physiological properties of the strains are described . The thermotolerant cultures of methylotrophs are similar to Methylobacter vinelandii, though differ from it by some characteristics . The thermophilic microorganisms should be classed as a separate species Methylococcus thermophilus. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Sep-Oct, 11(5), 704 - 10 {Stableness of the alkaline protease of the fungus Torula thermophila strain UzPT-1 to heating and the action of Ca2+ ions}; Karavaeva NN et al.; Thermal stability of protease of the fungus Torula thermophila strain UzPT-1 was examined . The dependence of this property on the content of monomer and dimer forms in the preparation was also investigated . The preparations with a high content of the dimer form showed greater thermal stability in distilled water . The preparations/with the predominant monomer from retained thermal stability in buffer solutions at pH 8 and lost it in distilled water when stored in the cold (2-4 degrees C) for several days . The preparations which lost thermal stability upon ammonium sulphate precipitation recovered partially or completely after addition of Ca2+ ions at a concentration of 0.001 M. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Sep-Oct, 11(5), 686 - 90 {Torula thermophila, strain UzPT-1 a thermophilic producer of proteolytic enzymes}; Zakirov MZ et al.; The properties of the thermophilous fungus Torula thermophila producing proteolytic enzymes are described . Oprimal conditions for its cultivation are established . The maximum action of the preparation isolated from the culture liquid filtrate is at pH 9-11 . The temperature maximum of the enzyme activity is 70 degrees C. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Sep-Oct, 44(5), 938 - 42 {Distribution of highly thermophilic, nonsporulating bacteria in the hot springs of Tadzhikistan}; Egorova LA et al.; Extreme-thermophilic non-sporeforming bacteria belonging to the Thermus genus are widely distributed in hot springs (40-90 degrees C) of Tadzhikistan . Their content was highest (1.8-10(4)--6.0-10(4) cells per gram of ooze) in springs with the temperature of water of 50-60 degrees C, and decreased (to 8.0-10(2)--4.0-10(3) cells per gram of ooze) in springs with the same temperature of water but with a low content of ooze . The number of the cells was even less (5.0-10(2)--4.0-10(3) per gram of ooze) in the surface layers of heated soil, especially at a depth of 2 cm . The lowest number of the cells (0.5-4.0 cells per 1 ml) was found in water at the surface of soil, with the temperature of 96, 93, and 65 degrees C. Biokhimiia, 1975 Sep-Oct, 40(5), 909 - 14 {Partial purification and properties of protease from Torula thermophila}; Karavaeva NN et al.; 11-Fold purified protease preparation is isolated from cultural medium of Torula thermophila UzPT-1 by means of ammonium sulphate precipitation and gel chromatography through Sephadex G-100 . Disc polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed two portease components, one of them possessing proteolytic activity . pH interval for protease activity was found to be 3.5-12, the maximal activity was observed at pH 8.5-11, the highest enzyme resistance--at pH 6-8 . The enzyme almost completely preserved its activity for 1 hour in distilled water at 60 degrees C . The temperature maximum of the enzyme activity was 70 degrees at pH 8 . The enzyme may be referred to proteases of serine nature, because it is completely inactivated with diisopropylphosphofluoridate, but it retains the activity in the presence of chelating agents (EDTA, o-phenantroline, ditizone) and inhibitors of SH-groups (sodium p-chloromercuriumbenzoate, iodoacetic acid) . The enzyme was not inactivated with phenylmethylsulphonylfluoride and the trypsin inhibitor from soybean . The protease studied most efficiently hydrolyzed caseine and hemoglobin, in a less degree--human serum albumin and fibrinogen and almost did not attack egg albumin . The enzyme undergoes association-dissociation under pH change during gel filtration through Sephadex. Biotechnol Bioeng, 1975 Aug, 17(8), 1119 - 35 Thermophilic anaerobic digestion of solid waste for fuel gas production; Cooney CL; Anaerobic digestion offers a potential means of converting organic solid waste into fuel gas and thereby provide a supplemental and readily utilizable source of energy . We are particularly interested in the use of thermophilic digestion over a mesophilic operation for it can achieve higher rates of digestion, greater conversion of waste organics to gas, faster solid-liquid separation, and minimization of bacterial and viral pathogen accumulation . Our results comparing mesophilic (37 degree C) and thermophilic (65 degree C) anaerobic digestion of domestic solid waste confirm the increased rate and conversion of waste to methane . In addition, utilizing radioactive labeling of glucose and acetic acid, we have measured the volumetric rates of volatile acid production and disappearance under both mesophilic and thermophilic conditions. Br J Ind Med, 1975 Aug, 32(3), 228 - 34 Chest symptoms in farming communities with special reference to farmer's lung; Morgan DC et al.; Surveys were carried out on random samples of the farming population in Devon and Wales in order to estimate the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and of positive precipitin reactions to thermophilic fungi . Bronchitis, as defined, was common among the Welsh hill farmers, and the proportion of positive serological tests was higher in both the areas surveyed in Wales as compared with Devon . All three surveys confirmed a previous finding that the proportion of positive precipitin tests was higher among non-smokers than smokers . Although the numbers were small there was some indication that measurement of peak expiratory flow showed different relationships with age in non-smokers according to the presence or absence of positive precipitin tests . The difficulty of determining prevalence rates for farmer's lung is discussed, but the results suggest a rate not dissimilar to those found in two areas of Scotland which were more than 20 times higher than any figure previously reported in Britain. J Clin Microbiol, 1975 Jul, 2(1), 55 - 61 A scheme for the identification of thermophilic actinomycetes associated with hypersensitivity pneumonitis; Kurup VP et al.; A scheme has been developed for the identification of thermophilic actinomycetes associated with hypersensitivity pneumonitis . Eighty strains, 10 Micropolyspora faeni, 6 Saccharomonospora viridis, 52 Thermoactinomyces candidus, 7 T . vulgaris, 4 T . sacchari, and 1 T . dichotomica, either isolated from patients' environment or received as authentic strains, were studied . In addition to the cultural and microscopic morphology in various media, each strain was subjected to an array of biochemical tests . These tests included decomposition of tyrosine, xanthine, hypoxanthine, gelatin, casein, esculin, and arbutin . Using a rapid thin-layer chromatography method, the isomer of diaminopimelic acid and sugar in the whole cell hydrolysate were studied . The thermophilic actinomycetes can be identified in a reasonable period of time using a combination of all these tests. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Jul-Aug, 11(4), 506 - 14 {Influence of products of thermophilous methane fermentation on the mixed lactic acid bacterial culture}; Midhlin ED et al.; The effect of products resulting from thermophilous methane fermentation on the accumulation and ratio of different lactic acid bacteria (Str . lactis, Str . cremoris, Str . diacetilactis, Str . diacetil . var . acetoinicus, Leuc . citrovorum8 L . plantarum) was investigated upon their combined cultivation in milk and serum . In combined cultivation of the streptococcal culture the rate of growth of a single strain differed from that in separate cultivation . Str . cremoris was accumulated with the highest rate during its separate cultivation and with the lowest rate during its combined cultivation . An addition of products of thermophilous methane fermentation to the combined culture of streptococci of different strains increased the growth rate and accumulation of each strain . At the same time the products influenced differently the quantitative ratios of various strains in the resulting biomass . For instance, the relative content of Str . cremoris and Leuc . citrovorum decreased insignificantly and that of Str . lactis and Str . diacetil . var . acetoin.increased . The combined cultivation of the five streptococcal strains with L . plantarum in the medium containing no additions of thermophilous methane fermentation products increased the relative content of L . plantarum from the beginning of fermentation . In the medium containing the additions of this parameter varied sinusoidally with a minimum of 6 to 9 hours . Possible mechanisms of these changes are discussed. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Jul-Aug, 44(4), 661 - 5 {Thermus ruber obligate thermophilic bacteria in the thermal springs of Kamchatka}; Loginova LG et al.; The new species of the obligate-thermophilic bacterium Thermus ruber is widely distributed in hot springs of Kamchatka with the temperature of water from 57 to 90 degrees C . The bacterium does not oxidize sulphur . It contains a red carotenoid pigment similar to neuro-sporaxanthine and retrodehydro-gamma-carotene. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Jul-Aug, 44(4), 707 - 13 {Method of isolating pure cultures of mesophilic, thermotolerant and thermophilic methane-utilizing bacteria}; Malashenko IuR et al.; The paper describes a technique for isolation of pure cultures of various physiological groups (mesophilic, thermotolerant, and thermophilic) of methylotrophs bacteria . The technique is based on the application of solid media containing simultaneously two sources of carbon: elective for the accompanying microflora and elective for the obligate methylotrophs . If the culture to be studied is inoculated into such a medium, the following colonies will be found: (1) the initial culture; (2) pure cultures of the methylotrophs; and (3) the accompanying microflora . The paper presents a scheme for isolation of pure cultures of the methylotrophs, criteria for controlling their purity, recommendations for the composition of growth media which would not inhibit the growth of the obligate methylotrophs by organic substrates . The technique may also be used for the isolation of pure cultures of other bacteria (mycobacteria, lithotrophs, etc.) which are difficult to be separated from the accompanying microflora. Eur J Biochem, 1975 Jun 16, 55(1), 201 - 9 Affinity chromatography on immobilised nucleotides . Some applications to the purification of thermophilic dehydrogenases and kinases; Comer MJ et al.; The effect of pH and temperature on the capacity and binding of Bacillus stearothermophilus, alcohol dehydrogenase and phosphofructokinase to N6-(6-aminohexyl)-5'-AMP-Sepharose has been examined . Specific elution from the substituted AMP-Sepharose was examined using a variety of cofactors, fragments of cofactors and substrates . A purification scheme for each enzyme on the substituted AMP-Sepharose using nucleotides and gradients of pH and salt is presented . Interestingly, elevated temperature increased the affinity of both enzymes for N6-(6-aminohexyl)-5'-AMP-Sepharose, however, the Michaelis constant for nucleotide determined at various temperatures remained constant . The effect of pH and salt concentration on the binding of B . stearothermophilus glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase to 6-aminohexanoyl-NAD+-Sepharose was also examined; raising the pH above 7.5 lowers the capacity of the matrix and the effect of a range of ammonium sulphate concentrations on the adsorption of the enzyme was examined . A specific purification of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase from partially purified extracts of this organism was achieved. J Virol, 1975 Jun, 15(6), 1449 - 53 Isolation and characterization of a bacteriophage infectious to an extreme thermophile, Thermus thermophilus HB8; Sakaki Y et al.; A bacteriophage (phiYS40) infectious to an extreme thermophile, Thermus thermophilus HB8, was isolated and characterized . phiYS40 grows over the temperature range of 56 to 78 C, and the optimum growth temperature is about 65 C . The phage had a latent period of 80 min and a burst size of about 80 at 65 C . The phage has a hexagonal head 0.125 mum in diameter, a tail 0.178 mum long and 0.027 mum wide, a base plate and tail fibers . The phage is thermostable in broth but rather unstable in a buffer containing 10 mM Tris, 10 mM MgCl2, pH 7.5 . The addition of Casamino Acids (1 percent), polypeptone (0.8 percent), yeast extract (0.4 percent), NaCl (0.1 M) or spermidine (1 mM) to the buffer restores the thermostability of phiYS40 to the same degree as in broth . The phage is also thermostable in water of the hot spring from which this phage was isolated . The nucleic acid of PhiYS40 is a double-stranded DNA and has a molecular weight of 1.36 X 10-8 . The guanine plus cytosine content of the DNA was determined to be about 35 percent from chemical determinations, buoyant density (1.693 g/cm-3 in CsCl), and melting temperature (83.5 C in 0.15 M NaCl plus 0.015 M sodium citrate). J Gen Microbiol, 1975 Jun, 88(2), 321 - 8 Extremely thermophilic gram-negative bacteria from hot tap water; Pask-Hughes R et al.; Two strains of heterotrophic, non-motile, Gram-negative extreme thermophiles have been isolated from hot tap water . These strains (NH and DI) have been characterized and compared with strains of genus Thermus . Few of the single organic compounds tested supported growth in the presence of ammonium salts, and, like Thermus strains, growth on undefined media was restricted to dilute tryptone-yeast extract-mineral salt solutions . Nutrients agar and similar common laboratory media did not support growth . The growth rate was similar to that of Thermus strains, as was the unusual pattern of antibiotic resistance . Mean base composition of NH was 61-4% guanine plus cytosine (G+C), and DI was 62-0 to 62-2% G+C, which are several per cent lower than the G+C contents of other strains so far described. Aust J Biol Sci, 1975 Jun, 28(3), 323 - 30 Microbiological aspects of wood chip storage in tropical environments; Greaves H; The microbiology of tropical wood chip storage has been examined in small experimental piles at two sites in New Guinea . Biodeterioration occurred in the forms of wood discoloration and loss of wood substance, including cellulosics; over a period of 2-4 months c . 20% per month of the chip pile by volume was seriously discoloured by microorganisms, and wood substance loss amounted to c . 1.5% per month (microscopic assessment) . A range of microorganisms which produce discoloration were isolated . Decay was mainly due to soft-rotting microfungi such as Chaetomium globosum, C . thermophile, Humicola lanuginosa, Cephalosporium acremonium and Gliomastix subiculosa . Wood-rotting basidiomycetes were infrequent, although pockets of decayed (white rot) mycelial-matted chips were observed in the outer 1.5 m during dismantling of the 4-month-old pile at Vanimo . A successional trend of colonizing microorganisms was established, and profiles of the main zones of microbiological activity have been determined . The rapid rise in temperature, which is characteristic of wood chip piles after construction, had a marked influence on the microbial populations . Thermotolerant isolates included Humicola spp., Aspergillus spp., some actinomycetes, and members of the bacterial genus Bacillus . Reasonable chemical control of biodeterioration was achieved by dipping chip samples in a 1% solution of sodium pentachlorophenate . Three trichlorophenol formulations were less effective. J Bacteriol, 1975 Jun, 122(3), 1257 - 64 Purification and properties of glutamate dehydrogenase from a thermophilic bacillus; Epstein I et al.; A 250- to 300-fold purification of a nicotinamide adenine denucleotide phosphate (NADP)-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH, E.C . 1.4.1.4) with a yield of 60% from a thermophilic bacillus is described . More than one NADP-specific GDH was detected by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis . The enzyme is of high molecular weight (approximately 2 X 10-6), similar to that of the beef and frog liver GDH . The pI of the thermophilic GDH is at pH 5.24 . The enzyme is highly thermostable at the pH range of 5.8 to 9.0 . The purified GDH, unlike the crude enzyme, was very labile at subzero temperatures . An unidentified factor(s) from the crude cell-free extract prevented the inactivation of the purified GDH at -70 C . Various reactants of the GDH system and D-glutamate also protected, to some extent, the enzyme from inactivation at -70 C . From the Michaelis constants for glutamate (1.1 X 10-2M), NADP (3 X 10-4M), ammonia (2.1 X 10-2M), alpha-ketoglutarate (1.3 X 10-3M), and reduced NADP (5.3 X 10-5M), it is suggested that the enzyme catalyzes in vivo the formation of glutamate from ammonia and alpha-ketoglutarate . The amination of alpha-ketoglutarate and deamination of glutamate by the thermophilic GDH are optimal at the pH values of 7.2 and 8.4, respectively. C R Acad Sci Hebd Seances Acad Sci D, 1975 May 5, 280(17), 2053 - 6 {A naturally occurring thermophilic strain of tobacco mosaic virus, isolated in Madagascar}; Gense MT; A strain of Tobacco Mosaic Virus was isolated from Tomato leaves grown in Madagascar, in the region of Tananarive . Its optimal temperature for multiplication is between 30 and 34 degrees C, which makes it thermophilic compared to the common strain . This strain, however, does not appear to be identical to the thermoresistant TC strain. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 May-Jun, 11(3), 423 - 6 {Cytochrome f from Chlorella pyrenoidosa Pringsheim 82 T}; Mutuskin AA et al.; Cytochrome of the f type was isolated from the thermophilous autotrophic strain Chlorella pyrenoidosa Pringsheim 82T and purified on Sephadex G-75 . The isolation procedure allowed a simultaneous production of glutamate dehydrogenase isoenzymes . From 100 g of Chlorella wet paste 100 to 120 nM of electrophoretically unicomponent protein with a molecular weight of 12,000 to 13,000 were isolated . The Chlorella cytochrome had an absorption spectrum in the visible light that was typical of the f type cytochromes. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 May-Jun, 44(3), 470 - 5 {Oxidation of phenol by Bacillus stearothermophilus strains}; Golovachev RS et al.; The assimilation of phenol as a sole source of carbon and energy was studied with the thermophilic bacillus isolated from the geothermal zones in the South Ural . This ability was displayed by 11 strains of Bacillus stearothermophilus among 26 studied strains . The most active strains oxidized all phenol, when its content in the medium was 0.1--0.2%, during two days, at 56--58 degrees C, with aeration; a considerable amount of biomass was accumulated and the medium was acidified . The maximum concentration of phenol, which did not suppress the bacterial growth, was 0.3% . The majority of the strains of Bac . stearothermophilus capable of phenol oxidation were isolated from the regions heated with parothermal gases which contained phenols. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 May-Jun, 44(3), 489 - 91 {Ecology of the obligate thermophilic bacteria}; Loginova LG et al.; The obligate thermophilic non-sporeforming bacterium Thermus ruber, isolated from the thermal springs of Kamchatka at temperatures of 60 to 90 degrees C (Loginova et al.,1974), has a high lytic activity towards the living and dead cells of Escherichia coli and Micrococcus lysodeikticus. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 May-Jun, 44(3), 492 - 7 {Metabolic characteristics of thermophilic microorganisms}; Pozmogova IN; The maximum growth rate of thermophilic bacteria was found in the exponential growth phase during 2 to 3 hours, and the metabolism was aerobic . In the linear growth phase, the substrate (glucose) was metabolized both by the aerobic and anaerobic pathways during the cultivation of the thermophilic bacteria with shaking; this was confirmed by increasing values of the respiratory quotient and by the evolution of volatile acids . The mesophilic bacteria oxidized the substrate by the aerobic pathway under the same conditions of cultivation, both during the exponential and linear growth phases, and had the stable value of the respiratory quotient . The economic coefficient was lower in the thermophilic microorganisms (bacteria and thermotolerant yeasts) than in the mesophilic cultures. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 May-Jun, 44(3), 538 - 41 {Comparative characteristics of the ability to coagulate milk in different representatives of the order Actinomycetales}; Paronian AKh et al.; The ability to clot milk was studied among 482 cultures of Actinomycetales . The highest activity was manifested by thermophilic actinomycetes, the next come globisporous, white, and gray groups of the genus Actinomyces . Cultures belonging to the genera Mycobacterium and Mycococcus did not clot milk . The ability to clot milk can be used as an additional taxonomic index while studying ray fungi. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 May-Jun, 44(3), 518 - 23 {New genus of actinomycetes: Excellospora gen . nov.}; Agre NS et al.; Morphological, cultural and physiological properties of two strains of soil thermophilic actinomycetes were studied . These strains were compared to the actinomycetes of related genera and were found to be close to Micropolyspora and Actinomadura . However, they differed from both genera by the structure of the sporiferous apparatus, from Micropolyspora by the type of the cell wall, and from Actinomadura by the fatty acid composition of lipids of the mycelium . A new genus of actinomycetes, Excellospora Agre a . Guzeva gen . nov., is suggested on the basis of this study . Two species belonging to the genus Micropolyspora are proposed to assign to the new genus as Excellospora viridinigra and Excellospora rubrobrunea . Since these strains differ from the aforementioned species by the traits used for differentiation of the species of actinomycetes, they are described as a new species of the new genus Excellospora Agre a . Guzeva gen . nov . sp . nov. Mycopathologia, 1975 Apr 30, 55(2), 83 - 90 Experimentally induced mycetoma: species of Sporotrichum and Sporothrix; Stretton RJ; The potential pathogenicity of four saprophytic species of Sporotrichum, viz; S . carnis, S . cerebriforme, S . pruinosum and S . thermophile were compared to S . schenckii and all could survive in vivo and S . pruinosum may possess limited virulence . Thielavia thermophila and Sporothrix albicans were able to cause local mycetoma. Chest, 1975 Apr, 67(4), 405 - 7 Hypersensitivity studies in popple (Aspen tree) peelers; Thiede WH et al.; In the course of investigation of the relationship between hypersensitivity pneumonitis and the wood industry 45 popple peelers were studied . Four roentgenograms consistent with diffuse lung disease were found . All cases were in examinees who were also dairy farmers . Questionnaires revealed no instance of clinical symptoms of hypersensitivity pneumonitis . Gel immunodiffusion studies were positive to various antigens in eight cases, but no correlation could be made with pulmonary function or chest roentgenogram abnormalities in relation to occupation . Cultures of the wood and the surrounding environment yielded thermophilic fungi as well as other known antigenic material . It is concluded that the occupation of popple peeling does not represent an increased risk of development of hypersensitivity pneumonitis. Appl Microbiol, 1975 Apr, 29(4), 455 - 7 Toxigenic thermophilic and thermotolerant fungi; Davis ND et al.; Twenty-three isolates of fungi, representing 13 thermophilic and thermotolerant species, were bioassayed for toxigenicity to brine shrimp, chicken embryos, and rats . Thirteen isolates representing nine genera were highly toxic to at least two of the three systems . Seven additional isolates of five genera were slightly toxic. J Bacteriol, 1975 Apr, 122(1), 177 - 84 Psychrophilic, mesophilic, and thermophilic triosephosphate isomerases from three clostridial species; Shing YW et al.; Triosephosphate isomerase was purified to homogeneity as judged by analytical gel electrophoresis from clostridium sp . strain 69, clostridium pasteurianum, and C . thermosaccharolyticum, which grow optimally at 18, 37, and 55 C, respectively . Comparative studies on these purified proteins showed that they had the same molecular weight (53,000) and subunit molecular weight (26,500) . They were equally susceptible to the active site-directed inhibitor, glycidol phosphate . However, their temperature and pH optima, as well as their stabilities to heat, urea, and sodium dodecyl sulfate, differed . The proteins also had different mobilities in acrylamide gel electrophoresis . This difference in ionic character was also reflected in the elution behavior of the enzymes from hydroxyapatite and in the isoelectric points determined by isoelectric focusing in acrylamide gel . The amino acid composition of these proteins showed that the thermophilic enzyme contains a greater amount of proline than the other enzymes . The ratio of acidic amino acids to basic amino acids was 1.79, 1.38, and 1.66 for the thermophilic mesophilic and psychrophilic enzymes, respectively . This is consistent with the relative isoelectric point values of these three enzymes. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Mar-Apr, 44(2), 298 - 303 {Lysogeny in heat-tolerant hydrocarbon-oxidizing actinomycetes of species Actinomyces griseomycini}; Muradov M et al.; Six strains of thermophilic hydrocarbon-oxidizing Actinomyces griseomycini were tested for lysogeny . The lysogenic state was detected in the four strains and their phages were isolated . The phages isolated from the three strains were virulent and cause lysis of the host culture . All isolated phages were specific and did not cause lysis of other actinomycetes species . However, the phages had different activity towards the six studied strains of Actinomyces griseomycini . One phage induced lysis only of its indicator culture, other phages caused lysis of four strains, including those two from which no phage was isolated . All phages produced negative colonies of identical morphology . The morphology of their particles was also the same . The phages induced cross-resistance and were characterized by thermoresistance. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Mar-Apr, 44(2), 265 - 8 {New species of thermophilic bacilli--Bacillus thermocatenulatus nov . sp}; Golovacheva RS et al.; Detailed study of the obligate-thermophilic aerobic spore-forming bacterium, indentified earlier as Bacillus megaterium, allowed to describe it as a new species--Bacillus thermocatenulatus nov . sp . This organism is characterized by a high content of GC in DNA (69 mole percent). Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Mar-Apr, 44(2), 241 - 4 {Dynamics of the formation of extracellular protease and the ATP pool in a thermophilic strain of Bacillus brevis}; Tsaplina IA et al.; The dynamics of varying ATP concentration was studied in the cells of the thermophilic strain of Bacillus brevis 224 synthesizing a neutral exoprotease . Some irregularities during the primary and secondary growth of the culture corresponded to the changes in the amount of ATP . A sharp decrease (by a factor of ca . 100) in the level of ATP pool was detected in the bacterial cells after 2.5 hours of their exponential growth; their growth ceased and the synthesis of protease was depressed . A decrease in the rate of the enzyme synthesis coincides with an increase in the concentration of ATP in the cells. J Biochem (Tokyo), 1975 Mar, 77(3), 587 - 93 Hybridization of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; Suzuki K et al.; 1 . Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases {EC 1.2.1.12} from rabbit, pig, lobster, yeast, E . coli, and B . stearothermophilus have been subjected to hybridization in 3M NaCL . 2 . Suitable mixtures of electrophoretically distinct glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases were found to give five-membered by electrophoresis on cellulose acetate . 3 . The thermophile enzyme did not form hybrids with any of its mesophile counterparts, presumably because it does not dissociate under the conditions used . 4 . Hybridization of pig enzyme with lobster enzyme that had been inactivated by selective carboxymethylation of Cystetramer containing only one active pig enzyme subunit . Individual subunits would thus appear to express their activity independently even within hybrid tetramers formed with subunits of another species . 5 . The successful hybridization of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases from evolutionarily distant sources suggests that the tertiary and quaternary structures of the enzyme have been highly conserved. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Mar-Apr, 44(2), 313 - 6 {Dynamics of growth of mesophilic and thermophilic microflora from hot springs}; Pozmogova IN; Samples containing mesophilic and thermophilic bacteria from a natural thermal spring were inoculated into a medium made with the water of the same spring . The growth rate of the thermophilic microflora was higher but the mesophilic microflora produced more biomass than the thermophilic bacteria. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Mar-Apr, 11(2), 185 - 8 {Identification of the nature of the slimy substance of the thermophilic culture of Bac . subtilis-20}; Sergeyeva VV et al.; By infrared spectrography and gas-liquid chromatography the composition of the slimy substance of the thermophilic culture Bac . subtilis-20 has been investigated . The slimy substance synthesized by Bac . subtilis-20 has been shown to be a polysaccharide . Xylose, amnnose and glucose have been found in its acid hydrolysate. J Bacteriol, 1975 Mar, 121(3), 848 - 56 Regulatory factors affecting alpha-amylase production in bacillus licheniformis; Saito N et al.; Possible factors regulating alpha-mylase synthesis in wild-type Bacillus licheniformis and in mutants producing elevated levels of the enzyme were studied in terms of catabolite repression, apparent temperature-sensitive repression, induction, and culture age . The synthesis of alpha-amylase in the parent strain occurred long after the culture reached the stationary phase of growth as a result of de novo protein synthesis, occurred only at high temperature around 50 C and not below 45 C, appeared to be induced in the presence of oligosaccharides with some linkage of alpha-1,4-, beta-1,4, beta-1,6-glucosyl glucose, or alpha-1,6-galactosyl glucose, and was repressed by the addition of exogenous glucose or low-molecular-weight metabolites . The addition of cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate stimulated alpha-amylase accumulation in growing cultures of the parent strain, but neither shortened the long lap period prior to the start of alpha-amylase synthesis nor mitigated the repressive effect of glucose . Mutant strains derived from the parent strain showed variation in the pattern of alpha-amylase synthesis, and some of them such as F-12s and F-14 produced alpha-amylase constitutively and without sensitivity to catabolite repression or transient repression from the moment of cell growth . These results are discussed in relation to possible regulatory mechanisms that might account for the observed characteristics of alpha-amylase synthesis in this facultative thermophilic microorganism. J Biochem (Tokyo), 1975 Feb, 77(2), 469 - 72 Novel monofunctional substrates of polynucleotide phosphorylase . The "single-addition" of 2'(3')-O-dihydrocinnamoyl-nucleoside 5'-diphosphate to a primer oligonucleotide; Kikuchi Y et al.; A method was developed for stepwise wynthesis of oligonucleotides of difined wequence using 2'(3')-O-dihydrocinnamoyl-nucleoside 5'-diphosphates as substrates for polynucleotide phosphorylase {ED 2.7.7.8} . Polynucleotide phosphorylase from Thermus thermophilus catalyzed the transfer of one 2'(3')-blocked ADP to the 3'-terminus of the primer trinucleoside diphosphate, ApApA . The product was 2'(3')-substituted triadenylyladenosine . The blocking group, dihydrocinnamoyl, could be removed completely from the product without destruction of the phosphodiester bond using alpha-chymotrypsin {ED 3.4.21.1} at neutral pH. Am Rev Respir Dis, 1975 Feb, 111(2), 201 - 5 Precipitating antibodies in office workers and hospitalized patients directed toward antigens causing hypersensitivity pneumonitis; Chmelik F et al.; The frequency of precipitating antibodies to Aspergillus, thermophilic actinomycetes, and pigeon serum was studied in hospitalized patients and in employees of the state of Wisconsin . Precipitins to Aspergillus were detected in 9 per cent of the hospitalized patients and 3 per cent of the state employees . The majority of the serologically reactive hospitalized patients were diagnosed as having carcinoma with metastases, lymphoma, or leukemia . No evidence of hypersensitivity pneumonitis or invasive aspergillosis was seen in these patients . The frequency of antibodies to thermophilic actinomycetes (3 per cent) and pigeon serum (1 per cent) was similar in both groups . Women from 17 to 25 years of age and men from 52 to 66 years of age demonstrated an increased incidence of positive precipitins. Appl Microbiol, 1975 Feb, 29(2), 219 - 23 Production and purification of the thermophilic bacteriophage TP-84; Epstein I et al.; A new procedure for production and purification of the thermophilic bacteriophage TP-84 in high yields is described . Cultures of Bacillus stearothermophilus strain 10, enriched with nutrients to obtain heavy growth and to prevent sporulation and maintained at a pH of 6.5, were infected with the phage in a 100-liter fermentor . Addition of magnesium chloride (0.01 M) and a temperature of 58-C were essential for maximal phage production . Phage (5 times 1011 infective particles/ml) was precipitated with polyethylene glycol (molecular weight 6,000) in the presence of sodium chloride and was further purified by cesium chloride density centrifugation. Mikrobiologiia, 1975 Jan-Feb, 44(1), 141 - 6 {Growth and development of extreme-thermophilic bacteria at 70 degrees}; Egorova LA; Nine cultures of non-sporeforming gram-negative extreme-thermophilic bacterium Thermus flavus have been isolated from hot springs of Kamchatka . Their optimal growth temperature on a solid potato medium was 70 to 76 degrees C, and on a liquid medium (20 per cent potato broth containing 0.5 per cent peptone and 0.1 per cent yeast extract) 70 degrees C . The minimum time of generation of the bacterium, strain 71, growing on the liquid medium at 70 degrees C, was 52 minutes . Other extreme-thermophilic cultures differ from the strain 71 by a lower growth rate . The maximum biomass yield was 1.96 g per litre of the medium after 6 to 9 hours of growth . The extreme-thermophilic bacteria of Kamchatka are similar to those from the hot springs of Japan. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 1975 Jan-Feb, 11(1), 5 - 8 {Synthesis of mucolytic enzymes by thermophilic strains of microorganisms}; Derkanosova LN et al.; The paper presents data on the accumulation of biomass and the rate of enzyme synthesis on nutrient media of different composition by two thermophilic microorganisms isolated from soil--Bacterium sp . 1641 and Actinomyces sp . 10. J Bacteriol, 1975 Jan, 121(1), 55 - 64 Energetics of Bacillus stearothermophilus growth: molar growth yield and temperature effects on growth efficiency; Coultate TP et al.; The major growth yield of a prototrophic strain of Bacillus stearothermophilus under aerobic conditions on salts medium containing ammonium nitrate as the nitrogen source and glucose or succinate as the carbon source was maximal at the lowest growth temperature employed and decreased steadily as the temperature was raised . The temperature optima for growth yield and for growth rate were thus different . The molar growth yield values of the thermophile, especially at the lower growth temperatures, were similar to those reported for aerobically grown mesophilic bacteria, both on glucose and on succinate . At the higher growth temperatures, a lower proportion of glucose carbon was incorporated into cells and a correspondingly greater proportion was left incompletely utilized in the medium, mostly as acetate . This suggests a greater inefficiency in the coordination of the nonoxidative and oxidative phases of glucose metabolism at the gigher temperatures . Another factor causing a decreased cell yield at higher temperatures was possibly an uncoupling of energy production from respiration . The rates of respiration by intact cells of the thermophile on glucose and on succinate followed the Arrhenius relationship from 55 C to 20 C, which is some 20 C below the minimal growth temperature of the organism . The Arrhenius constant was 17.1 kcal/mol for glucose oxidation and 13.5 kcal/mol for succinate oxidation . These results are comparable to those reported for some mesophiles, and they suggest that the inability of the thermophile to grow at temperatures below about 41 C is not due to an abnormally high temperature coefficient for the uptake and oxidation of the carbon source. Sov J Dev Biol, 1975 Jan, 5(1), 24 - 8 Temperature dependence of cleavage rates in carp, pike, and whitefish; Ignat'eva GM; The time taken by the first four cleavage divisions has been determined for the carp, pike, and whitefish (Coregonus peled) at various temperatures; a quantity tau-0 was calculated, and plotted against temperature . From the curves plotted for all species investigated, it was found that in the salmon but not in the more thermophile species the rate of division within the spawning temperature range could be described by a constant Q 10 which had a value exceeding 2 or 3 . Criteria for determing the lower temperature limit of the range for optimum development of teleosts are discussed. Int J Pept Protein Res, 1975, 7(4), 341 - 3 Denaturation of thermophilic and mesophilic 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase by 8M urea; Veronese FM et al.; The denaturation reaction of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6-phospho-D-gluconate: NADP oxidoreductase (decarboxylating EC 1.1.1.44) from B . Stearothermophilus and E . coli in 8 M urea has been compared . The rates of denaturation were evaluated from the fluorescence quenching that occurs at 334 nm . The thermophilic enzyme has been found about ten times more resistant to the action of the denaturating agent, and showed a biphasic denaturation process, whereas the E . coli enzyme followed a single first-order kinetics. Acta Chem Scand B, 1975, 29(7), 733 - 40 Binding of the Fluorescent probes 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate and N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine to bacteria; Mantsala; Changes in fluorescence intensities in Pseudomonas fluorescens, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus thermophilus, and Bacillus subtilis were investigated by means of the fluorescence probes (1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate and N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine) during a temperature programmed run . A decrease in fluorescence intensity was observed in all investigated organisms when the temperature was elevated from 4 to about 40 degrees C . A strong increase in fluorescence intensity was found in gram-negative Ps . fluorescens and E . coli when the temperature was elevated over 40 degrees C . On the other hand, only a slight enhancement in fluorescence intensities was observed in gram-positive Str . thermophilus and B . subtilis when the lipid specific dye NPN was applied at elevated temperatures . Discontinuities in all the fluorescence temperature profiles were found between 20 and 30 degrees C in the case of both ANS and NPN . With ANS the fluorescence profiles turned upwards and with NPN downwards after the inflection points . The effects of KCl, NH4Cl, NaCl and LiCl on ANS binding differed from those detected for NPN . Saturation of probe binding was reached at lower salt concentrations in the case of NPN than ANS, but depended somewhat on temperature. Vet Med Nauki, 1975, 12(8), 75 - 81 {Influence of some factors on the quality of Bulgarian sour milk}; Slavchev G; The results obtained with three feeding experiments revealed that combined forages containing biovit-40 are effective in that the antibiotic is not excreted with cow's milk and it does not inhibit the development of lactic acid fermentation . The season of the year associated with the passage of a given type of feed on to another type was found to influence the course of the lactic acid fermentation as follows: --in feeding green mass in the summer period there is a stimulation of the development of Lactobacillus bulgaricum and Str . thermophilus in the milk; -- in feeding greater amounts of succulent forages in the winter, spring, and autumn periods there is a retardation in the development of the same organisms in the milk. J Gen Microbiol, 1975 Jan, 86(1), 156 - 64 Extremely thermophilic acidophilic bacteria convergent with Sulfolobus acidocaldarius; de Rosa M et al.; A series of extremely thermophilic acidophilic bacteria has been characterized as closely resembling the species Sulfolobus acidocaldarius except for a totally different guanosine-cytosine content in the DNA; some conceptual consequences of this situation are discussed . Both organisms also share special features, including a very characteristic type of ether lipid, with other extreme acidophilic thermophiles. Basic Life Sci, 1975, 5A, 39 - 46 Maintenance of DNA and repair of Apurinic sites; Verly WG; Escherichia coli cells contain an enzyme which hydrolyzes a phosphodiester bond near each apurinic site in double-stranded DNA . This endonuclease is specific for apurinic sites; it has no effect on normal DNA, and its action on alkylated DNA is restricted to apurinic sites . In vitro incubation with the endonuclease for apurinic sites, DNA polymerase I, and ligase permits repair of DNA containing apurinic sites . The endonuclease for apurinic sites might thus play a role in cell survival after a treatment with alkylating agents; as DNA spontaneously loses purines, the enzyme might also play a role in the maintance of a normal DNA in every cell . Indeed, an endonuclease for apurinic sites has been found not only in bacteria but also in animal and plant cells; it is very active in thermophilic bacteria. J Biochem (Tokyo), 1975 Jan 1, 77(1?), 233 - 40 Studies on NADP-+-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase from an extreme thermophile, Thermus flavus AT-62; Saiki T et al.; 1 . NADP-+-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase {EC 1.1.1.42} was partially purified by about 440-fold from an extreme thermophile, Thermus flavus AT-62 . 2 . Remarkable thermostability of the enzyme was confirmed . The enzyme was not inactivated after 60 min at 70 degrees, and the activity was lost only slowly at 80 degrees . Above 90 degrees, however, rapid inactivation was observed . 3 . The dehydrogenase was susceptible to concerted inhibition by oxaloacetate plus glyoxylate . In the presence of oxaloacetate plus glyoxylate (each 1 mM), 75 percent inhibition was observed . 4 . The degree of inhibition of the enzyme by oxaloacetate plus glyoxylate decreased markedly above 60 degrees . The affinity of the enzyme for isocitrate and NADP-+ was also reduced markedly above 60 degrees . The activation energy calculated from Arrhenius plots below and above 60 degrees were 14,500 and 8,000 cal per mole, respectively . These observations suggest a possible conformation change of the enzyme protein at a transition temperature of 60 degrees, and the physiological significance of this in the adaptation of thermophiles to elevated temperatures is discussed. Arch Microbiol, 1975, 102(2), 155 - 61 Ultrastructural changes occurring during germination and outgrowth of spores of the thermophile Bacillus acidocaldarius; Handley PS et al.; Spores of the thermophilic, acidophilic, Bacillus acidocaldarius were covered by a thick outer coat and a laminated inner coat (5.5 nm periodicity) . Small membranous vesicles were present in the spore core and they disappeared as germination proceeded . After depolymerization of the cortex, and a 30% increase in spore diameter a localized gap appeared in the laminated inner coat only . This inner coat gap was narrow and could be the whole length of the spore . The germ cell appeared to grow, or to be pushed towards the inner coat gap, at which stage the outer coat disappeared in the same localized area . As the vegetative cell grew out the spore coat fell away, with loose cortical material still attached to it . The young germ cell developed a large spherical electron dense inclusion body in the cytoplasm, at the same time as the ribosomal and nuclear areas became distinct. J Gen Microbiol, 1975 Jan, 86(1), 165 - 73 Ultrastructure of an extremely thermophilic acidophilic micro-organism; de Rosa M et al.; A thermoacidophilic micro-organism, isolated from volcanic hot springs near Naples, was cultivated in vitro, and examined by electron microscopy in sections and after negative staining . The cells were almost spherical, with a diameter of about 0.7 to 1.0 mum . Their morphology was very primitive: the protoplasm was composed only of ground cytoplasm, ribosomes, and randomly distributed DNA strands . They were surrounded by a plasma membrane and by an extracellular coat about 20 nm thick which displayed a regular hexagonal pattern . Cell replication occurred by binary fission with median constriction during which a bipolar localization of nuclear material was observable . The morphology is compared with that of other known micro-organisms living in similar habitats. Z Allg Mikrobiol, 1975, 15(6), 393 - 8 Amylase of the thermophilic actinomycete Thermomonospora vulgaris; Allam AM et al.; alpha-Amylase of the thermophilic actinomycete Thermomonospora vulgaris was partially purified . Maximal enzyme activity was obtained at 60degreeC and pH 6.0 . KM value was l.4% . The effect of some metal salts on enzyme activity was studied . Enzyme activity was inhibited by by KCN, EDTA, and iodoacetate . Inhibition by EDTA was completely nullified by CaCl2, but the inhibition by iodoacetate was not overcome by 2-mercaptoethanol . Exposure of the enzyme to pH 7.0 and 9.0 for 2 hr . did not affect the enzyme, but exposure to pH 3.0 for few minutes completely inactivated the enzyme . Exposure of the enzyme to 60degreeC resulted in an appreciable inactivation and exposure to 80degreeC completely inactivated the enzyme . Addition of CaCl2, 2-mercaptoethanol, or enzyme substrate the 60degreeC exposed enzyme . However, bovine serym albumin had a protective effect when the enzyme was exposed to 60degreeC but not to 80degreeC . The enzyme was stable in the presence of 8 M urea.
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