HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by FALKINHAM, J. O. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by FALKINHAM, J. O., III Agricola Articles by FALKINHAM, J. O.

Arylsulfatase Activity of Mycobacterium avium, M. intracellulare, and M. scrofulaceum

Department of Biology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061

ABSTRACT

A rapid (3-h) arylsulfatase assay for cell suspensions of mycobacteria, in which p-nitrophenyl sulfate is used as the substrate, was developed. Arylsulfatase activity was found in cell suspensions of representative strains of Mycobacterium avium, Mycobacterium intracellulare, and Mycobacterium scrofulaceum grown without the substrate in either Middlebrook 7H9 medium containing 0.2% (wt/vol) glucose and 0.05% (vol/vol) Tween 80 or Dubos broth medium, but was absent in cells grown in a low-pH, minimal medium containing 1% (vol/vol) Tween 80 as the sole carbon source. The levels of arylsulfatase activity of representatives of all three species were equal whether the activity was measured at pH 5.5, 6.5, or 7.5 and whether the cells were suspended in phosphate or Tris buffer. The addition of high levels of sulfate (present in the low-pH, Tween 80-containing medium) to Middlebrook 7H9 medium resulted in significantly lower levels of arylsulfatase activity in strains of M. scrofulaceum, but did not affect the levels in either M. avium or M. intracellulare. The levels of arylsulfatase activity were highest in M. avium, intermediate in M. intracellulare, and lowest in M. scrofulaceum strains. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of crude extracts from late-log-phase cells of representatives of each species produced activity bands of unique mobility (one in M. avium, three in M. intracellulare [82, 5, and 13%], and two in M. scrofulaceum [60 and 40%]).