Extracellular proteolytic enzymes of psychrophilic bacteria. II. Production and heterogeneity of enzymes of an obligately psychrophilic red-pigmented bacterium and of a white variant
The appearance of proteolytic enzymes in culture fluids during growth of an obligately psychrophilic red-pigmented bacterium and of a white variant was followed. Enzymes were precipitated with ammonium sulfate and fractionated on Sephadex G-100. Both organisms produced a slow-moving component (III) at the start of proteinase production and a fast-moving component as the culture aged. The fast-moving component of the red but not of the white organism was separated into two fractions (I-1 and I-2) on DEAE-cellulose. On filtration through Sephadex, fraction I-1 gave rise to fraction III; fraction I-2 gave rise to enzymatically active I-2 and inactive red pigment. It is suggested that both organisms produce fraction III initially and that this aggregates to form fraction I-1 and that the red organism produces fraction I-2, which is a separate protein.