Nature and properties of a Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteriocin.

Staphylococcin 1580, produced by Staphylococcus epidermidis 1580, consisted of 41.8% protein, 34% carbohydrate, and 21.9% lipid. In the protein fraction, the acidic amino acids, glutamic and aspartic acid, and the neutral amino acids, glycine and alanine, predominated. Neutral sugars consisted of glucose, galactose, and fucose in a molar ratio of 6:3:1. The purified bacteriocin was not inactivated by heating for 15 min at 120 C in the presence of 0.5% serum albumin and was stable in the pH range from 3.5 to 8.5. The compound was sensitive to the action of the proteolytic enzymes trypsin, Pronase, and chymotrypsin. All gram-negative bacteria tested were resistant; a large number of gram-positive bacteria were sensitive to staphylococcin 1580 action. Growth of stable staphylococcal L-forms was inhibited by the bacteriocin to the same extent as their parent strains. The staphylococcin was adsorbed to cell walls, cell membranes, and resistant cells. The effect of staphylococcin 1580 appeared to be bactericidal but not bacteriolytic.