title: Cell wall studies of Histoplasma capsulatum and Blastomyces dermatitidis using autologous and heterologous enzymes.
abstract: Enzymes capable of hydrolyzing cell walls of Blastomyces dermatitidis and chemotypes I and II of Histoplasma capsulatum were prepared in the laboratory or obtained from commercial sources. They included chitinases, beta-1,3-glucanases, beta-1,6-glucanase, and Pronase. Monosaccharides and disaccharides of glucose released from the cell walls by the enzymes were determined qualitatively by paper and gas-liquid chromatography, and monosaccharides were quantitated by the latter technique as well. An enzyme system isolated from Streptomyces sp. containing both chitinase and glucanase released maximum amounts of glucose and N-acetylglucosamine from the cell walls of H. capsulatum chemotype I. A chitinase preparation, free of glucanase, from Serratia marcescens released only chitobiose and N-acetylglucosamine from chemotype I cell walls, but the total quantity of N-acetylglucosamine released was about 60% less than that released by the Streptomyces system. A beta-1,3-glucanase from Bacillus circulans hydrolyzed the cell walls of H. capsulatum chemotype I, but a beta-1,6-glucanase failed to release glucose from the same walls. Autolytic enzymes, viz., beta-1,3-glucanases and several glycosidases were detected as constitutive enzymes in both yeast and mycelial phases of B. dermatitidis and H. capsulatum chemotypes I and II. No difference in the amount of activity was found between cell sap and culture filtrate preparations. The beta-glucanases prepared from the Histoplasma and Blastomyces strains were active on the cell walls of the yeast phases of H. capsulatum chemotypes I and II, releasing laminaribiose and glucose, but were essentially inactive on the cell walls of B. dermatitidis. Chitinase, beta-1,6-glucanase, alpha-glucanase, and alpha-glucosidase activities were absent from these fungal enzyme preparations.
mesh_terms: D000117:Acetylglucosamine / Q000378:metabolism; D000681:Amylases; D001758:Blastomyces / Q000166:cytology* / Q000201:enzymology; D002473:Cell Wall; D002688:Chitinases; D004187:Disaccharides / Q000032:analysis; D006658:Histoplasma / Q000166:cytology* / Q000201:enzymology; D009005:Monosaccharides / Q000032:analysis; D011402:Pronase; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000201:enzymology
chemical_list: D004187:Disaccharides; D009005:Monosaccharides; D000681:Amylases; D002688:Chitinases; D011402:Pronase; D000117:Acetylglucosamine