title: Algicidal activity and gliding motility of Saprospira sp. SS98-5.
abstract: A marine bacterium, Saprospira sp. SS98-5, which was isolated from Kagoshima Bay, Japan, was able to kill and lyse the cells of the diatom Chaetoceros ceratosporum. The multicellular filamentous cells of this bacterium captured the diatom cells, formed cell aggregates, and lysed them in an enriched sea water (ESS) liquid medium. Strain SS98-5 also formed plaques on double layer agar plates incorporating diatom cells. The diatom cell walls were partially degraded at the contact sites with the bacteria, the bacteria invaded from there into the diatom cells, and then the diatom cells were completely lysed. The strain possessed gliding motility and grew as spreading colonies on ESS agar plates containing lower concentrations of polypeptone (below 0.1%) while forming nonspreading colonies on ESS agar plates containing 0.5% polypeptone. Electron micrographs of ultrathin sections demonstrated that microtubule-like structures were observable only in gliding motile cells. Both the gliding motility and the microtubule-like structures were diminished by the addition of podophyllotoxin, an inhibitor of microtubule assembly, suggesting that the microtubule-like structures observed in these bacterial cells are related to their gliding motility.
authors.affiliation: United Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kagoshima University, Korimoto 1-21-24, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan.
authors.forename: Gou
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Furusawa
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshikawa
authors.forename: Akihiro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Taizo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sakata
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D003470:Culture Media; D017377:Diatoms / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure; D016965:Gram-Negative Anaerobic Straight, Curved, and Helical Rods / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008870:Microtubules / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009068:Movement; D010461:Peptones / Q000494:pharmacology; D010802:Phylogeny; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000032:analysis; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media; D010461:Peptones; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S