122 



HILLEL S. LEVINSON 



400 



LxJ 



a:) 



O 

 o 



O 



320 



240 



O2 CONSUMPTION 



KLETT READING 

 ^J — o — o a 



100 



80O 



< 



602 



40S 



20^ 







-220 



200 



-180 



O 



160 I— 

 LU 



-J 



140 ^ 



120 



10" 



10- 



MANGANESE CONCENTRATION (h/l) 



Fig. 2. The effect of manganese concentration on germination, oxygen 

 uptake, and turbidity of spore suspensions. Indicated Klett readings repre- 

 sent turbidities. Spores were not heated. Manganese was as MnS04. 

 Medium was composed of ammonium and potassium acetates, pH 6.6, 0.05M 

 each; and glucose, 0.025M. Reaction period was 140 min. at 30°C (Levin 

 son and Sevag, 1953). 



manganese — an amount perhaps sufficient for activation of an enzyme ne- 

 cessary for the production of substances required for spore germination. 



The list of enzymes activated by manganese (Table II) is incomplete and 

 varied, and appears at first glance to be quite hopeless because of its very 

 length and diversity. We thought it significant, however, that cobalt and 

 zinc, which are peptidase activators, also stimulate B. megaterium spore 

 germination. It may also be of significance that some of the proteolytic en- 



Table I 

 Efifect of spore extract on oxygen uptake of intact spores 



Extract fraction 



Whole extract 

 Dialyzable 

 Non-dialyzable 

 No extract 



0-2 uptake (/xl) 



45 



105 



22 



9 



3.0 mg spores. Glucose 0.025M, 120 minutes incubation. 30°C. Potassium 

 and ammonium acetates 0.15M, pH 6.8. 



