Resistance to penicillin in mutants of a penicillinase-negative organism, Staphylococcus aureus H

Differential methicillin susceptibilities of peptidoglycan syntheses in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

The mechanism of staphylococcal resistance to methicillin is unknown. Peptidoglycan synthesis was studied in a methicillin-resistant and a derived methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus strain. Although the methicillin minimum inhibitory concentration for growth of the methicillin-resistant strain was 1,600 micrograms/ml, peptidoglycan synthesis by the organism incubated in a wall synthesis solution was inhibited about 90% by 5 micrograms of methicillin per ml. In contrast, high concentrations of methicillin added to actively growing cultures of the methicillin-resistant strain had little effect on growth or peptidoglycan synthesis. Peptidoglycan synthesis in chloramphenicol-treated cultures was more susceptible to methicillin than it was in actively growing cultures of the methicillin-resistant strain. It is proposed that in this strain cell wall thickening peptidoglycan synthesis which predominates in cell wall synthesis solution and chloramphenicol-treated cultures is methicillin sensitive, whereas peptidoglycan synthesis involved in cell division, primarily in the region of the septum, which predominates in actively growing cultures is methicillin resistant. Both cell wall thickening and septal peptidoglycan syntheses are methicillin sensitive in the methicillin-sensitive strain.

Antibiotic resistance in Neisseria denitrificans

An ampicillin-resistant strain of Neisseria denitrificans was produced by serial passage of the organisms in media containing increased concentrations of antibiotic. The 400-fold increase in resistance obtained was a relatively stable characteristic. Ampicillin resistance in this organism was apparently related to a loss or modification of the penicillin-binding proteins associated with the cytoplasmic membranes. Membranes isolated from the ampicillin-resistant strain bound significantly less radioactive penicillin than those isolated from the parent strain and revealed one major and three minor penicillin-binding proteins. All four penicillin-binding proteins were present in reduced amounts or had a decreased capacity for penicillin binding in the ampicillin-resistant cells. The increased resistance did not involve enzymic degradation of the antibiotic or a general reduction in the permeability of the outer layers of the cell. No difference in the amount of peptidoglycan present in the parent and ampicillin-resistant cells or in the gross chemical structure of the peptidoglycans of the two strains was observed.

Biochemical significance of the hard and soft acids and bases principle

The hard and soft acids and bases (HSAB) principle, which states that hard acids bind preferentially to hard bases and soft acids to soft bases, may serve to assess specific chemico-biological interactions. As living systems are composed mainly of "hard" elements, molecular events taking place within the cell are dominated by "hard-hard interactions". On this premise, it becomes likely that extraneous "soft" agents are particularly injurious to life. In the HSAB context a selected number of variegated phenomena are briefly discussed qualitatively; these include biocidal actions, heavy metal poisoning, chemical carcinogenesis, some enzymic reactions, and nucleic acid complexations. Although the HSAB principle cannot be used as a tool for mechanistic explanations of biochemical processes, it may provide clues to likely target molecules and the loci of action.

Mode of action of penicillins in vivo and in vitro in Bacillus megaterium

A new system in which the in vivo and in vitro formation of cross-links in the peptidoglycan of Bacillus megaterium can be compared directly has been developed. The method for the determination of the in vivo cross-linking consists of lysozyme digestion of acetylated [(14)C]diaminopimelic acid-labeled cells and Bio-Gel P-6 gel filtration of the digest. The elution profile indicates the cell wall synthesized in vivo consists of highly cross-linked fractions (44%), bisdisaccharide peptide(s) (38%), and disaccharide peptide(s) (18%). The in vitro system showed a high synthetic activity of cross-linked peptidoglycan. The synthesis was inhibited completely by 83.3 mug of ristocetin or vancomycin per ml or 10(-4) M p-chloromercuribenzoate and inhibited only partially by penicillins. The polymerization was stimulated by high concentrations of sucrose, glycerol, amino acids, or dimethyl sulfoxide. The formation of cross-links was inhibited 50% at 0.3 mug of dicloxacillin per ml and 90% at 0.5 mug or more. It was also stimulated by high concentrations of sucrose, glycerol, or dimethyl sulfoxide. Effective concentrations of dicloxacillin on the growth, viability, and morphology of B. megaterium were determined. Sharp inhibition of cross-linking occurred in vivo and in vitro at these effective concentrations, whereas the incorporation of [(14)C]-diaminopimelate into bacterial cells was not affected at all. Cell-bound dicloxacillin reduced severely the degree of cross-linking in the cell wall synthesized after transfer to a dicloxacillin-free medium. Cell wall synthesized in the presence of dicloxacillin showed a higher rate of turnover than did the normal cell wall. Moreover, disaccharide peptide(s) was degraded faster than was bisdisaccharide peptide(s) in dicloxacillin-treated cells. From these observations, the primary target of penicillin action in B. megaterium is discussed in relation to the inhibition of cross-linking, penicillin-binding components, and cell lysis.

Interaction of penicillin with the bacterial cell: penicillin-binding proteins and penicillin-sensitive enzymes

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