Abstract
Lysostaphin digestion of peptidoglycan (PG) from Staphylococcus aureus resulted in chromosomal DNA fragmentation by released DNase, as directly visualized in situ on isolated nucleoids. Nevertheless, DNA digestion was partially prevented by previous incubation with antibiotics that inhibit PG synthesis. This inhibitory effect was much more remarkable with glycopeptides vancomycin and mainly teicoplanin than with beta-lactams cloxacillin and ceftazidime. Therefore, inhibition of PG chain elongation has a more significant inhibition of DNA degradation than inhibition of PG cross-linking, possibly due to a reduction in DNase storage at the cell wall.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to prof. Steve Johnston, University of Queensland, Australia, for the critical reading of the manuscript and improving of the English style. This work has been supported by grants from the European Community, FP 7, ID: 278232 (MagicBullet), and from the Xunta de Galicia 10CSA916020PR.
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Communicated by John Helmann.
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Tamayo, M., Santiso, R., Gosálvez, J. et al. Cell wall active antibiotics reduce chromosomal DNA fragmentation by peptidoglycan hydrolysis in Staphylococcus aureus . Arch Microbiol 194, 967–975 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-012-0831-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-012-0831-0