Enzyme-driven approaches to decontaminate bacillus cells and spores
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Authors
Mundra, Ruchir Vishwaprakash
Issue Date
2015-08
Type
Electronic thesis
Thesis
Thesis
Language
ENG
Keywords
Chemical engineering
Alternative Title
Abstract
Bacillus cells have an exposed germ cell wall and are vulnerable to irreversible enzymatic hydrolysis. However, under environmental stress, they form recalcitrant spores. Spores are highly resistant to a range of chemical and physical assaults and to the best of our knowledge, a biocatalytic sporicidal system has never been developed before. To that end, we have developed and characterized an environmentally benign biocatalytic treatment against bacillus spores. A multilayered, cross-linked coat envelops the germ cell wall and confers the spores with resistance to lytic enzymes. Taking cues from nature, we identified proteases which degrade the formidable coat layer. Proteinase K and subtilisin Carlsberg, for B. cereus and B. anthracis spore coats, respectively, led to a morphological change in the otherwise impregnable coat structure, increasing coat permeability towards cortex lytic enzymes such as lysozyme and SleB, thereby initiating spore germination. The germinated spores were further shown to be vulnerable to bacteriolytic enzymes resulting in effective spore killing.
Description
August 2015
School of Engineering
School of Engineering
Full Citation
Publisher
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY