Characterization of bacteriocin 28 produced by Clostridium perfringens

Abstract

Bacteriocin 28, produced by Clostridium perfringens, was characterized by gel filtration and sodium dodecyl sulfate - polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis as a glycoprotein with a molecule weight of approximately 100,000. Density gradient centrifugation suggested a lower weight of 84,000. The bacteriocin bound firmly to phenyl-Sepharose CL-4B gel, indicating hydrophobic properties, and elution from this gel with ethylene glycol clearly separated bacteriocin from the alpha and theta toxins of C. perfringens, the latter of which was also hydrophobic. Bacteriocin 28 was immunogenic, inducing neutralizing and precipitating antibodies, and possessed three isoelectric points: 7.37, 7.05, and 5.4. Amino acid and carbohydrate analysis of the active material showed a composition of 15 amino acids and several carbohydrates. The molecule demonstrated instability with increasing purification, and several approaches to purification are described.