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The Initial Structural Lesion of Penicillin Action in Bacillus Megaterium

Overview
Journal J Cell Biol
Specialty Cell Biology
Date 1965 Aug 1
PMID 4956030
Citations 16
Authors
P Fitz-James
R Hancock
Affiliations
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Abstract

The effect of penicillin on the structure of Bacillus megaterium cells was followed in media with and without osmotic stabilization. In peptone without osmotic support the cells showed a distortion of the normal membrane-wall relationship by 20 minutes. This appeared to be a combination of both membrane distortion and cytoplasmic leakage. Lytic changes quickly followed. With osmotic support a clean-cut lesion at the transverse-septal site developed by 10 minutes' growth in penicillin. The membrane lost its normal relationship to the cell wall and formed a pocket which was filled with a fibrous material which appeared to be unorganized wall mucopeptide. The pocket of fibers enlarged until the cell either lysed or formed a protoplast.

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References
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Fitz-James P . Electron microscopy of Bacillus megaterium undergoing isolation of its nuclear bodies. J Bacteriol. 1964; 87(5):1202-10. PMC: 277168. DOI: 10.1128/jb.87.5.1202-1210.1964. View
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Fitz-James P . Cytological and chemical studies of the growth of protoplasts of Bacillus megaterium. J Biophys Biochem Cytol. 1958; 4(3):257-66. PMC: 2224490. DOI: 10.1083/jcb.4.3.257. View