Staphylococcal Muller phenomenon: relationship to the plasminogen-plasmin system.

Quie, Paul G. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis) and Lewis W. Wannamaker. Staphylococcal Muller phenomenon: relationship to the plasminogen-plasmin system. J. Bacteriol. 82:770-783. 1961.-The staphylococcal factor that produces particulate proteolysis (Muller phenomenon) in whole blood or hemoglobinserum agar plates has been obtained in supernatants from broth cultures. This has facilitated study of the phenomenon in a sterile system. The bacterial factor has been partially separated from other extracellular products by starch zone electrophoresis. Staphylococcal Muller factor and staphylokinase are similar in heat stability, in electrophoretic mobility, and in activation of a serum proteolytic system. A relationship of the Muller phenomenon to the plasminogen-plasmin system is also suggested by the observation that purified plasminogen may be substituted for serum in the sterile system, and by the finding that inhibitors of the plasminogen-plasmin system also inhibit the Muller phenomenon. Although growing colonies of streptococci fail to exhibit the Muller phenomenon, particulate proteolysis can be demonstrated with streptokinase, using a double-diffusion technique. A similar phenomenon can be produced with urine, suggesting that urokinase may substitute for the bacterial activators in the Muller phenomenon. Although evidence from other sources suggests that the serum Muller factor is particulate, the serum factor appears to be freely diffusible in agar and is not readily sedimented in the ultracentrifuge.