190 



THE ACTINOMYCETES, Vol. I 



adenosine diphosphate, and diphosphopyri- 

 dine nucleotide, as well as in its susceptibility 

 to iodoacetate and fluoride in the breakdown 

 of fructose 1 ,6-diphosphate. 



Intact cells or extracts were unable to 

 ferment hexoses under normal conditions. 

 It was suggested that obligate aerobiosis of 

 S. coelicolor results from a biochemical le- 

 sion, the inability to regenerate anaerobi- 

 cally the diphosphopyridine nucleotide re- 

 duced in the oxidation of triose phosphate. 



According to Sato, aerobic actinomycetes 

 possess the respiratory pigments of the a, b, 

 c, (I, and do cytochromes. On the other hand, 

 the anaerobic actinomyces of the alkali type 

 possesses a, b, d cytochromes, and those of the 

 acid type possess no cytochrome at all. Birk 

 et al. demonstrated the production of a b- 

 type cytochrome by S>. fradiae. 



In the presence of 2,6-dichloroindophenol, 

 crude extracts of S. scabies were found by 

 Douglas and San Clemente capable of cat- 

 alyzing the dehydrogenation of succinate, 

 citrate, malate, and glutamate. Transami- 

 nase activity was also demonstrated, since 

 a:-ketoglutarate was converted to glutamate 

 in the presence of aspartate, leucine, or 

 valine as amino group donors. 



According to Inoue (1958), S. griseus pos- 

 sesses the oxidase of the intermediates in the 

 Krebs cycles. Glucose, pyruvate, acetate, 

 oxalsuccinate, and lactate were oxidized 

 readily, but the oxidation rate of citrate was 

 very low in the given condition. Formate 

 was not oxidized at all. Glucose oxidation 

 was iiihil)ited by monoiodoacetate and so- 

 dium fluoride. Succinate oxidation was in- 

 hibited by malonate, the latter being oxi- 

 dized slight ly. Citrate appeared to l)e formed 

 as a result of an oxalacetate-acetate con- 

 densation reaction, a reaction not inhibited 

 by streptomycin. 



Inoue further rei)()rte(l that »S. griseus 

 possesses cytocln'omc's a, b, and c; their wave 

 lengths were found at (>()() m/x, 507 m/x, Jmd 

 550 myu, respect i\-ely. Cyanide inliil)it('(l oxi- 



dation of acetate, malate, and lactate; glu- 

 cose, pyruvate, oxalacetate, succinate, and 

 oxalsuccinate were inhibited only slightly. 

 Sodium azide oxalacetate slightly inhibited 

 oxidation of succinate and lactate, but not 

 glucose and pyruvate. It was suggested that 

 the cytochrome system acts as an electron 

 transfer system in S. griseus; the participa- 

 tion of some other systems, such as that of 

 fiavoprotein, may also be considered. 



According to Musilek and Sevcik (1958), 

 the addition of sodium arsenite in a final 

 concentration of 4 X 10"^ M to the medium 

 of S. erythreus reduced biosynthesis of eryth- 

 romycin by 87 per cent, with a simultaneous 

 increase in pyruvic acid. Sodium acetate and 

 sodium propionate in final concentrations of 

 0.5 per cent decreased the inhibitory effect 

 of arsenite on erythromycin biosynthesis. 

 Other salts of organic acids did not reduce 

 the effect of arsenite. The latter completely 

 inhibited oxidative decarboxylation of pyru- 

 vate and oxidation of acetate by the washed 

 mycelium of S. erythreus, but only partly 

 inhibited glucose oxidation. Biosynthesis of 

 erythromycin depends on uninterrupted oxi- 

 dati\'e decarboxylation of pyruvic acid to 

 acetic acid. The authors suggested the prob- 

 ability of the part played by acetic acid as 

 the initial substrate in the biosynthesis of 

 propionic acid, which is assumed to be the 

 precursor of the lactone nucleus in the eryth- 

 romycin molecule. 



Catalase 



The relation between the development 

 and catalase activity of S. griseus was stud- 

 ied by Kovacs and Matkovics. A close 

 relation was found between sti-eptomycin 

 production and catalase acti^'ity. A high 

 catalase activity was not necessarily a pre- 

 recjuisite for streptomycin production, but 

 was always present with high yields of strep- 

 tomycin. With only little catalase activity, 

 there was \-ery little str(^i)tomy('in produced. 



