Production, purification and some properties of extracellular bacteriolytic enzymes produced by Streptomyces hygroscopicus

A strain Streptomyces hygroscopicus was isolated from a soil sample from Vojvodina, Yugoslavia. From the fermentation broth of this antibiotic-producing strain an extracellular protcolytic complex was isolated. By purification of the crude protcolytic complex, bacteriolytic enzymes were obtained. The bacteriolytic preparation, active toward heat-killed E. coli, was analyzed by SDS-PAGE with substrate (E. coli)-containing gels. Three bands, as distinct bacteriolytic enzymes, were detected. Their molecular mass was estimated to be approximately 42000D, 27000D and less than 10000D for small bacteriolytic enzyme(s). Bacteriolytic enzymes are metallo-enzymes.