Partial nucleotide limitation induces phosphodiesterase I and 5'-nucleotidase in Bacillus subtilis.

Changes in the specific activity of enzymes involved in the degradation of RNA and nucleotides were measured in Bacillus subtilis under conditions of guanine deprivation, which initiates sporulation, and uracil deprivation, which does not initiate sporulation. Whereas the specific activities of most of the enzymes studied increased by less than a factor of 3, those of 5'-mononucleotide-producing phosphodiesterase and 5'-nucleotidase increased at least eightfold under both deprivation conditions.