Growth rate of Enterobacteriaceae at elevated temperatures: limitation by methionine.

The effect of elevated temperatures on growth rate was studied in five strains of Enterobacteriaceae. In all the strains tested a shift to the elevated temperature resulted in an immediate decrease in growth rate which was due to limitation in the availability of endogenous methionine. The first biosynthetic enzyme of the methionine pathway-homoserine transsuccinylase-was studied in extracts of Aerobacter aerogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, and Escherichia coli and was shown to be temperature sensitive in all of them.