The action of acriflavine on yeast protoplasts

Summary

The effect of acriflavine on protoplasts of a strain ofSaccharomyces carlsbergensis has been compared with the effect on intact cells of the same strain. The strain was typical of the species in that little or no mutation occurred when young cells were exposed to acriflavine at concentrations up to 50 μg/ml for 4 hours. However, after exposure of protoplasts, prepared by the action of snail crop juice, to acriflavine at concentrations up to 10 μg/ml for the same period, the rate of oxidation of acetate was reduced by 45% whereas the rate of fermentation of glucose remained unchanged. It is concluded that the susceptibility of cells to acriflavine may be dependent on the resistance of cell wall material to penetration by the dye, thus controlling the rate of entry into the cytoplasm.