Purification of a Salt-Requiring Enzyme from an Obligately Halophilic Bacterium

Abstract

The discovery that some halophilic enzymes may be reactivated from the salt-free and inactive state has facilitated the purification of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-linked malic acid dehydrogenase from crude extracts of Halobacterium galinarium. In the absence of large amounts of salt, the enzyme was totally inactive; yet, in this salt-free state, it could be purified by conventional techniques. The highly purified halophilic enzyme was shown to require a high concentration of salt for activity.