Growth of Actinobacillus mallei was inhibited by kanamycin; the minimal inhibitory concentration in a complex medium was 1.25 μg/ml and in a chemically defined medium 5 μg/ml. Higher concentrations of kanamycin had a pronounced bactericidal effect. When a suspension of cells containing 5 × 107 viable cells/ml was incubated in the presence of 20 μg/ml of kanamycin in a chemically defined medium, complete sterilization resulted after 6 hours. Cells irradiated with ultraviolet light were grown in complex or supplemental minimal media, washed, and exposed to 20 μg/ml of kanamycin in minimal medium for 4 hours. Auxotrophic mutants with requirements for tryptophane, phenylalanine, proline, and uracil were detected among the survivors of kanamycin treatment. After treatment with 0.01 M nitrous acid and growth in minimal medium supplemented with amino acids, cells were washed and then exposed to kanamycin in minimal medium. The proportion of autotrophs among the survivors varied from 1.3 to 75%. Mutants with requirements for each of the following amino acids were identified: methionine, methionine or cystine, arginine, leucine, tryptophane, histidme, and proline, with methionine-requiring mutants predominating. Exposure of mixtures of prototrophs and uracil-dependent and methionine-dependent auxotrophs to 20 μg/ml of kanamycin for 4 hours resulted in approximately 700- and 300-fold increases, respectively, in the ratio of auxotrophs to prototrophs.
Metabolic engineering of Escherichia coli W for isobutanol production on chemically defined medium and cheese whey as alternative raw material
