Detection of nine chitinase species in germinating cells ofMucor rouxii (original) (raw)

Abstract

Chitinolytic activity in aerobically germinating cells of_Mucor rouxii_ was studied. When an ammonium sulfate fraction (40% saturation) of cytosol was subjected to column chromatography in Bio-Gel P-100, two peaks of activity were separated: A and B, which showed molecular weights of 53 KDa and 28 KDa, respectively. After further purification by ion exchange chromatography in a column of DEAE Bio-Gel A, the lytic activity from peaks A and B resolved into four and five species, respectively. Species from peak A eluted with peaks at 0.075, 0.125, 0.160, and 0.225_M_ NaCl, whereas those from peak B did so at 0.050, 0.125, 0.190, 0.240. and 0.300_M_ NaCl. Like other chitinases from the same fungus, the ones detected here are of the exochitinolytic type, releasing diacetylchitobiose units from nascent chitin chains. The complex chitinolytic system in these cells is discussed and compared with that exhibited by exponentially growing cells of the same fungus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Investigacion en Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Quimica, Universidad de Guanajuato, Apartado Postal 187, Gto. 36000, Guanajuato, Mexico
    Mario Pedraza-Reyes & Everardo Lopez-Romero
  2. Departamento de Genetica y Biologia Molecular, Centro de Investigacion y de Estudios Avanzados del IPN, Apartado Postal 14-740, 07000, Mexico, Mexico
    Everardo Lopez-Romero

Authors

  1. Mario Pedraza-Reyes
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  2. Everardo Lopez-Romero
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Pedraza-Reyes, M., Lopez-Romero, E. Detection of nine chitinase species in germinating cells of_Mucor rouxii_.Current Microbiology 22, 43–46 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02106211

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