The Genetics of Bacillus licheniformis Penicillinase: a Preliminary Analysis from Studies on Mutation and Inter-strain and Intra-strain Transformations

Abstract

A system of transformation to Bacillus licheniformis is described, in which a wide variety of markers can be transferred from one strain to another. A number of mutants affecting the regulatory, enzymic and serological aspects of penicillinase production are described, classified and discussed. A control gene for penicillinase synthesis was found to be linked to the structural gene to four wild-type strains of B. licheniformis. The electrophoretic properties of the penicilli-nases produced by the progeny of inter-strain crosses appeared to be affected by the type of cell in which the relevant structural gene was expressed.