Abstract
BACTERIA unable to synthesize thymidylic acid (thy−) undergo thymineless death if cultivated in a liquid medium deprived of thymine1,2. We have found, however, that if thy− bacteria are plated on solid nutrient devoid of thymine at a moderate density (not more than 105 cells in a Petri dish) thymineless death does not occur. Cells of Bacillus subtilis remain viable in these conditions for more than 70 h (Fig. 1); cells of Escherichia coli decrease slowly in number: for instance, the cell count of strain B3thy− manifests a drop of 50–60 per cent in the course of 60–70 h. We conclude that the effect is related in some way to the characteristics of growth on a solid surface as distinct from a liquid medium.
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BRESLER, S., MOSEVITSKY, M. & VYACHESLAVOV, L. Complete Mutagenesis in a Bacterial Population induced by Thymine Starvation on Solid Media. Nature 225, 764–766 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1038/225764a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/225764a0
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