The Effect of Ethylenediaminetetra-acetic Acid on the Cell Walls of Some Gram-Negative Bacteria

Abstract

SUMMARYA comparative survey of amino acid, amino sugar, sugar and lipid components of the cell walls of strains of Fseudomonas aeruginosa, Alcaligelzes faecalis, Escherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis was made. The cell walls of P. aeruginosa and A. faecalis, against which ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid (EDTA) has a potent bactericidal action, differed from those of the other organisms principally in their sugar components and in their high content of phosphorus. EDTA at alkaline pH selectively solubilized a high proportion of the carbohydrate and phosphorus present, apparently as lipopolysaccharides, in the walls of sensitive organisms. It is suggested that metal cations and lipopolysaccharides in the cell walls of P. aeruginosa and A. faecalis may be essential to the structural integrity of these organisms.

FT-IR spectroscopic characteristics of differently cultivated Escherichia coli

“…A second very strong peak demonstrated the absorbance splitting at 1150, 1080, and 1030 cm -1 frequencies. According to Gray and Wilkinson (1965), phosphatidyl-ethanolamines characteristically absorb at 1030 cm -1 , and after Randle et al (1969), the content of this compound in the cell mass of E. coli diminishes in the stationary phase of growth. This seems to correspond well with the decrease of the respective IR absorption in our spectra (Figure 3 C-E).…”

Factors Influencing Death of Biotin-Deficient Yeast Cells

“…It was reported by the former group (14,15) that Alcaligenes faecalis was highly sensitive to EDTA while Escherichia coli was moderately sensitive. LEIVE (17,18) found that E, coli treated briefly with a low concentration of EDTA became permeable to actinomycin with little or no injury in viability, growth rate, or normal RNA and protein syntheses, resulting in the rapid release of approximately half of the lipopolysaccharide of cell wall layer (19).…”

“…While the exact point of attack on the cell surface is still obscure, an assumption may be drawn from the fact that it is restricted to the bud cells. EAGON and CARSON (13), and GRAY and WILKINSON (14) simultaneously reported that Pseudomonas aeruginosa lyses rapidly in the presence of EDTA, and both of them inferred that lipopolysaccharide is the site of attack by EDTA (15,16).…”

The Influence of Growth-limiting Substrate and Medium NaCl Concentration on the Synthesis of Magnesium-binding Sites in the Walls of Bacillus subtilis var. niger

“…This suggested that sodium ions impeded Mg2+ assimilation, possibly by competing for adsorption sites on the bacterial surface. Since adsorbed Mg2+ probably has an important functional role in bacteria (Gray & Wilkinson, 1965;Asbell & Eagen, 1966;Kushner & Onishi, 1966;Tempest & Strange, 1966), it seemed possible that bacteria might adapt to environments containing low Mg2+ concentrations, J. L. MEERS AND D. W. TEMPEST or highpNa+ concentrations, either by increasing the number of sites available for Mg2+ adsorption or by changing the chemical nature of these sites such that their affinity for Mg2+ was increased. These possibilities have been investigated and the results are reported here.…”