Nutrient conditions which trigger sporulation also activate expression of the Bacillus licheniformis alpha-amylase gene, amyL. Glucose represses both spore formation and expression of amyL. A fusion was constructed between the B. licheniformis alpha-amylase regulatory and 5' upstream sequences (amyRi) and the Escherichia coli lacZ structural gene to identify sequences involved in mediating temp...

Gram-positive bacteria code for one or more enzymes termed sortases which catalyze the covalent anchoring of substrate proteins on their cell wall. They recognize an amino acid sequence designated sorting motif, present close to the C-terminal end of the substrate proteins, cleave within this motif and catalyze anchoring of the polypeptide chain to the peptide crossbridge linking the peptidogly...

The phylogenetic relationships of 17 Bacillus strains isolated from plants and soil were determined from partial sequences of genes encoding 16S rRNA, gyraseA (gyrA) and the cheA histidine kinase. Five strains were closely related to Bacillus subtilis subsp. subtilis, three strains were more closely related to B. subtilis subsp. spizizeni and two strains were identified as B. mojavensis. The re...

Twenty six α-substituted N₄-acetamide derivatives of ciprofloxacin (CIPRO) and norfloxacin (NOR) were synthesized and assayed for antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis. The derivatives were primarily more active against Gram-positive bacteria. The CIPRO derivatives, CD-7 (Ar = 3-chlorophenyl), CD-9 (Ar = 2-pyrimidyl)...

Thermostability is a characteristic of most of the enzymes available for bulk industrial usage. Thermophilic microorganisms are of special interest as a source of novel thermostable enzymes. A total of 50 bacterial strains, isolated from local hot springs and ash samples were screened for the extracellular enzyme production including amylase, lipase, esterase, cellulase and β-galactosidase. As ...