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Bacteriolysis is inhibited by hydrogen peroxide and by proteases

  • Inflammation and Immunomodulation
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Abstract

Treatment ofStaphylococcus aureus in vitro with cationic agents results in the activation of their autolytic wall enzymes and in the degradation of their cell walls. Exposure of staphylococci either to hydrogen peroxide or the proteinases abolished the autolytic process. This effect was totally reversed by catalase and by proteinase inhibitors, respectively. It is suggested that the failure of neutrophils and macrophages to effectively degrade microbial cell wall components in inflammatory sites might be due to the inactivation of the autolytic wall enzymes of bacteria by hydrogen peroxide and by proteinases generated by the activated leukocytes. This might explain the prolonged chronic inflammatory sequelae seen following infections.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oral Biology, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Founded by the Alpha Omega Fraternity, P.O.B. 1172, 91010, Jerusalem, Israel

    I. Ginsburg

  2. The Department of Pathology, Universityof Michigan, 48109-0602, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    I. Ginsburg

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  1. I. Ginsburg
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Additional information

Supported by a research grant from Dr. SM. Robbins, Cleveland, Ohio, by grants HL-28442-07, HL-31963 and GM-29507 from the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.

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Ginsburg, I. Bacteriolysis is inhibited by hydrogen peroxide and by proteases. Agents and Actions 28, 238–242 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01967409

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01967409

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