THE INDUCTION OF LAMBDA PROPHAGES BY CONTROLLED DESICCATION

1967 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. Webb ◽  
M. D. Dumasia

Cells of Escherichia coli K12 (λ +) and Escherichia coli M3 (λ59) were desiccated at various levels of relative humidity (R.H.). When the cells were cultured in an enriched medium and held at 55% R.H., induction of the prophage in 36% of E. coli K12 cells and 75% of E. coli M3 cells occurred. At 30% R.H. or 70% R.H., fewer inductions took place. The maximum number of cells in which prophage induction occurred was found 15 minutes after desiccation began with E. coli K12 and immediately after the cells were dried with E. coli M3. After the attainment of maximum levels of induction, plaque-forming ability was gradually destroyed, but the rate of destruction was dependent on the R.H. at which the cells were held. The plaque-forming ability of the free viruses and of cells in which prophage induction had occurred were destroyed by prolonged desiccation at different rates. Also, the loss of colony-forming ability of the cells was more rapid than the inactivation of plaque-forming ability of either induced prophages or the free viruses. The compound, i-inositol, prevented prophage induction by desiccation and also stopped the destruction of induced prophages within the cell.It is concluded that water molecules bound to the DNA hold the prophage to the host DNA and their removal results in induction.

1967 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 303-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. Webb ◽  
M. D. Dumasia

Lysogenic cells of Escherichia coli K12 (λ+) and Escherichia coli M3 (λ59) were held in atmospheres having relative humidities (R.H.) from 30% to 80% and irradiated with 2537 Å ultraviolet light (uv.). The colony-forming ability of both types of cell was destroyed more rapidly at 55% R.H. than at any other level of R.H. With E. coli K12 (λ+) the percentage of cells in which prophage induction occurred increased as the dose of ultraviolet light increased and the maximum number of inductions occurred at 55% R.H. Inositol prevented (λ+) prophage induction but was less effective in doing so at 55% R.H. Desiccation alone induced the (λ59) prophage and subsequent uv. irradiation resulted in the destruction of the prophage. The maximum rate of destruction was found at 55% R.H. Inositol prevented the uv. inactivation of the (λ59) prophage, resulting in an increase in inductions with uv. dose at 30% R.H. The free phages were found to have the same sensitivity to ultraviolet light as the induced prophages but were less protected by inositol.It is proposed that water molecules hold the prophage to or in the host DNA and that ultraviolet light induces the prophage and destroys its integrity by reorientating these water molecules.


2016 ◽  
Vol 79 (7) ◽  
pp. 1143-1153 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOHN C. FRELKA ◽  
GORDON R. DAVIDSON ◽  
LINDA J. HARRIS

ABSTRACT After harvest, inshell walnuts are dried using low-temperature forced air and are then stored in bins or silos for up to 1 year. To better understand the survival of bacteria on inshell walnuts, aerobic plate counts (APCs) and Escherichia coli–coliform counts (ECCs) were evaluated during commercial storage (10 to 12°C and 63 to 65% relative humidity) over 9 months. APCs decreased by 1.4 to 2.0 log CFU per nut during the first 5 months of storage, and ECCs decreased by 1.3 to 2.2 log CFU per nut in the first month of storage. Through the remaining 4 to 8 months of storage, APCs and ECCs remained unchanged (P > 0.05) or decreased by <0.15 log CFU per nut per month. Similar trends were observed on kernels extracted from the inshell walnuts. APCs and ECCs were consistently and often significantly higher on kernels extracted from visibly broken inshell walnuts than on kernels extracted from visibly intact inshell walnuts. Parameters measured in this study were used to determine the survival of five-strain cocktails of E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella inoculated onto freshly hulled inshell walnuts (~8 log CFU/g) after simulated commercial drying (10 to 12 h; 40°C) and simulated commercial storage (12 months at 10°C and 65% relative humidity). Populations declined by 2.86, 5.01, and 4.40 log CFU per nut for E. coli O157:H7, L. monocytogenes, and Salmonella, respectively, after drying and during the first 8 days of storage. Salmonella populations changed at a rate of −0.33 log CFU per nut per month between days 8 and 360, to final levels of 2.83 ± 0.79 log CFU per nut. E. coli and L. monocytogenes populations changed by −0.17 log CFU per nut per month and −0.26 log CFU per nut per month between days 8 and 360, respectively. For some samples, E. coli or L. monocytogenes populations were below the limit of detection by plating (0.60 log CFU per nut) by day 183 or 148, respectively; at least one of the six samples was positive at each subsequent sampling time by either plating or by enrichment.


2019 ◽  
Vol 82 (5) ◽  
pp. 815-825 ◽  
Author(s):  
MAHTA MOUSSAVI ◽  
VANESSA LIEBERMAN ◽  
CHRIS THEOFEL ◽  
JAVAD BAROUEI ◽  
LINDA J. HARRIS

ABSTRACT During harvest, pistachios are hulled, separated in water into floater and sinker streams (in large part on the basis of nut density), and then dried before storage. Higher prevalence and levels of Salmonella were previously observed in floater pistachios, but contributing factors are unclear. To examine the behavior of pathogens on hulled pistachios during simulated drying delays, floater and sinker pistachios collected from commercial processors were inoculated at 1 or 3 log CFU/g with cocktails of Salmonella and in some cases Escherichia coli O157:H7 or Listeria monocytogenes and incubated for up to 30 h at 37°C and 90% relative humidity. Populations were measured by plating onto tryptic soy agar and appropriate selective agars. In most cases, no significant growth (P > 0.05) of Salmonella was observed in the first 3 h after inoculation in hulled floaters and sinkers. Growth of Salmonella was greater on floater pistachios than on corresponding sinkers and on floater pistachios with ≥25% hull adhering to the shell surface than on corresponding floaters with <25% adhering hull. Maximum Salmonella populations (2 to 7 log CFU/g) were ∼2-log higher on floaters than on corresponding sinkers. The growth of E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella on hulled pistachios was similar, but a longer lag time (approximately 11 h) and significantly lower maximum populations (4 versus 5 to 6 log CFU/g; P < 0.05) were predicted for L. monocytogenes. Significant growth of pathogens on hulled pistachios is possible when delays between hulling and drying are longer than 3 h, and pathogen growth is enhanced in the presence of adhering hull material.


1998 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 383-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
NANCY G. FAITH ◽  
RACHEL K. WIERZBA ◽  
ANNE M. IHNOT ◽  
ANN M. ROERING ◽  
TIMOTHY D. LORANG ◽  
...  

Pepperoni batter was prepared with fat contents of about 15, 20, and 32% (wt/wt) and inoculated with a pediococcal starter culture and ≥2.0 × 107 CFU/g of a five-strain inoculum of Escherichia coli O157:H7. The batter was fermented at 96°F (ca. 36°C) and 85% relative humidity (RH) to pH ≤ 4.8 and then dried at 55°F (ca. 13°C) and 65% RH to a moisture/protein ratio of ≤1.6:1. For storage, slices were packaged under air or vacuum and stored at 39°F (ca. 4°C) and 70°F (ca. 21°C). For baking, frozen slices were placed on retail frozen cheese pizzas that were subsequently baked at 275°F (ca. 135°C), 375°F (ca. 191°C), or 475°F (ca. 246°C) for 0 to 20 min. Appreciable differences related to fat levels were observed after drying; pathogen numbers decreased by 1.04, 1.31 and 1.62 log10 units in sticks prepared from batter at initial fat levels of 15, 20, and 32%, respectively. During storage, the temperature rather than the atmosphere had the greater effect on pathogen numbers, with similar viability observed among the three fat levels tested. At 70°F (ca. 21°C), compared to original levels, pathogen numbers decreased by ≥5.56 and ≥4.53 log10 units within 14 days in slices stored under air and vacuum, respectively, whereas at 39°F (ca. 4°C) numbers decreased by ≤2.43 log10 CFU/g after 60 days of storage under either atmosphere. Baking, as expected, resulted in greater reductions in pathogen numbers as the temperature and/or time of baking increased. However, it was still possible to recover the pathogen by enrichment after baking frozen slices on frozen pizza at 475°F (ca. 246°C) for 10 min or at 375°F (ca. 191°C) for 15 min. The calculated D values for all three temperatures tested increased as the fat content of the batter increased from 15 to 20 to 32%. The present study confirmed that fermentation and drying were sufficient to reduce levels of E. coli O157:H7 in pepperoni sticks by <2.0 log10 CFU/g. Storage of slices for at least 14 days at ambient temperature under air resulted in a >5.5-log10-unit total reduction of the pathogen. Baking slices on frozen pizza for at least 15 min at 475°F (ca. 246°C) or 20 min at 375°F (ca. 191°C) was necessary to reduce pathogen numbers to below detection by both direct plating and enrichment.


1984 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 706-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre L'Hérault ◽  
Young Sup Chung

Ozone was tested for its effect upon induction of lambda prophage in two different strains of Escherichia coli K-12. Based on the induction index and when compared to ultraviolet light, ozone appeared to be a weak, if any at all, inducer of the lytic cycle in E. coli. This is in agreement with other studies which have suggested that this agent is a weak inducer of the SOS functions.Key words: SOS functions, ultraviolet light, mutagen, ozone.


1971 ◽  
Vol 124 (5) ◽  
pp. 905-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. V. Krishna ◽  
P. R. Krishnaswamy ◽  
D. Rajagopal Rao

1. Cell-free extracts of Escherichia coli K12 catalyse the synthesis of N-acetyl-l-phenylalanine from acetyl-CoA and l-phenylalanine. 2. The acetyl-CoA–l-phenylalanine α-N-acetyltransferase was purified 160-fold from cell-free extracts. 3. The enzyme has a pH optimum of 8 and catalyses the acetylation of l-phenylalanine. Other l-amino acids such as histidine and alanine are acetylated at slower rates. 4. A transacylase was also purified from E. coli extracts and its substrate specificity studied. 5. The properties of both these enzymes were compared with those of other known amino acid acetyltransferases and transacylases.


1996 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 1561-1563 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Froshauer ◽  
A M Silvia ◽  
M Chidambaram ◽  
B Sharma ◽  
G M Weinstock

Danofloxacin (CP-76,136) is in a class of agents that inhibit DNA gyrase and trigger induction of the SOS response and temperate bacteriophages. Killing studies against the bovine pathogen Pasteurella haemolytica demonstrated that danofloxacin exhibits particularly rapid killing kinetics. Here, lysogenic Escherichia coli bearing lambda is found to be more sensitive to danofloxacin than nonlysogenic E. coli. Danofloxacin exposure also induced a prophage in P. haemolytica. The potency of danofloxacin against lysogens in likely enhanced by this prophage induction.


1996 ◽  
Vol 59 (12) ◽  
pp. 1260-1266 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAY C. HINKENS ◽  
NANCY G. FAITH ◽  
TIMOTHY D. LORANG ◽  
PHILLIP BAILEY ◽  
DENNIS BUEGE ◽  
...  

The outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 linked with dry-cured salami in late 1994 prompted regulatory action that required manufacturers of fermented products to demonstrate a 5-log unit reduction in counts of this pathogen during processing. Therefore, pepperoni batter (75% pork:25% beef with a fat content of ca. 32%) was inoculated with a pediococcal starter culture and a five-strain mixture of E. coli O157:H7 (≥2 × 107 CFU/g) and stuffed into 55-mm diameter fibrous casings 47 cm in length. The viability of the pathogen was monitored before stuffing, after fermentation, after thermal processing, and/or after drying. Chubs were fermented at 96°F (36°C) and 85% relative humidity (RH) to pH ≤ 5.0 and then dried at 55°F (13°C) and 65% RH to a moisture/protein ratio of ≤1.6:1 (modified method 6 process). Counts of the pathogen decreased about 1.2 log units after fermentation and drying. In subsequent experiments, heating chubs after fermentation to internal temperatures of 145°F (63°C) instantaneous or 128°F (53°C) for 60 min resulted in a ≥5-log unit decrease in numbers of strain O157:H7 without visibly affecting the texture or appearance of the product. These data revealed that a traditional nonthermal, process for pepperoni was only sufficient to eliminate relatively low levels (ca. 2 log CFU/g) of E. coli O157:H7, whereas heating to internal temperatures of 145°F (63°C) instantaneous or 128°F (53°C) for 60 min delivered a 5 to 6 log unit reduction in counts of the pathogen in pepperoni.


1971 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 661-672 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. S. Cox ◽  
M. C. Bondurant ◽  
M. T. Hatch

SUMMARYThe aerosol survivals in air and nitrogen of radiation sensitive and resistant mutants ofEscherichia coliB have been determined with logarithmic and resting phase bacteria. No consistent correlation was found between radiation sensitivity and aerosol sensitivity in the strains tested. Hence, the phenotypes Fil Her Exr, which determine sensitivity to radiation, do not influence aerosol survival, i.e. these known mechanisms which repair radiation-induced damage do not operate in aerosol stressedE. coli. In all cases the survival in air was less than that in nitrogen particularly so forE. coliBs-1. The effect is explained in terms of a toxic action of oxygen. Comparison of survival of log and resting phase bacteria show that log phase cells are less aerosol stable than are resting phase cells. The ability to synthesize DNA in bacteria collected from the aerosol was less than in control unstressed bacteria, and this effect was independent of the presence of oxygen. Reduced ability to synthesize DNA could have been caused by reduced metabolic activity. It is shown that two different death mechanisms occur simultaneously in aerosols at low relative humidity. One mechanism is oxygen dependent and the other oxygen independent. The former was not through a decrease in metabolic activity, whereas the latter could be.


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