Sensitization by heat treatment of Escherichia coli K-12 cells to hydrophobic antibacterial compounds.
The sensitivities of intact and heat-injured cells of Escherichia coli K-12 to several antibacterial compounds were measured by the prolongation of growth delay. Cells exposed to sublethal heat became more sensitive to various hydrophobic compounds, such as medium-chain fatty acids, alkyl esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid, and some kinds of antibiotics or dyes, than unheated cells; but there was a smaller or no increase in sensitivity to short-chain fatty acids, chloramphenicol, and vancomycin. The destruction by heat of a permeability barrier of the outer membrane may have sensitized the cells to hydrophobic compounds. The sensitization was much lower for a strain defective in lipopolysaccharide, which is important as a barrier against hydrophobic compounds.
Tsuchido
T
T
Department of Fermentation Technology, Osaka University, Japan.
Takano
M
M
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002463:Cell Membrane Permeability / Q000187:drug effects; D004396:Coloring Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D006358:Hot Temperature; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000032:analysis; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D013997:Time Factors
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004396:Coloring Agents; D005227:Fatty Acids; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides