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J Bacteriol. 1965 October; 90(4): 989-1000
Copyright © 1965 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Benzo[a]pyrene Uptake by Bacteria and Yeast

Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and National Cancer Institute-Atomic Energy Commission Co-Carcinogenesis Project, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

ABSTRACT

MOORE, B. G. (Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tenn.), AND ARTHUR P. HARRISON, JR. Benzo[a]pyrene uptake by bacteria and yeast. J. Bacteriol. 90:989–1000. 1965.—Various Enterobacteriaceae and yeast incubated in a medium containing 25 µg/ml of H³-benzo[a]pyrene (30% serum in the medium dissolves the hydrocarbon) retain radioactivity after washings with fresh 30% serum-medium. This radioactivity is defined as bound and represents intact benzo[a]pyrene. Factors relating to the binding of benzo[a]pyrene (benzo[a]pyrene uptake) have been studied in detail with Escherichia coli Ma, a triple auxotroph requiring L-leucine, uracil, and thymine. In defined medium, benzo[a]pyrene uptake by normally growing cells is 10^–10 to 2 x 10^–10 µg per cell. Uptake is the same in suspensions lacking leucine and containing chloramphenicol where there is neither measurable protein synthesis nor cell division. Uptake is diminished, but not eliminated, by autoclaving the cells; thus, some uptake occurs in the absence of enzymatic activity. Uptake is enhanced by heat shock, thymine deprivation, uracil deprivation, and exposure to penicillin. Thus, uptake is affected by the physiological state of the cells. Either the cells play a direct (enzymatic) role in uptake, or they affect uptake indirectly by increasing or altering the benzo[a]pyrene-binding structure. Physical fractionation of cells demonstrates that this structure is associated with the cell wall-membrane complex. All but 1% of the bound radioactivity is extracted with ethyl alcohol-ether. This residual radioactivity is defined as fixed, and may be associated with cell protein. The extracted radioactivity is identified as benzo[a]pyrene. Very little hydrocarbon is metabolized. Adverse photodynamic effects, increase in mutation, and dimunition in bacteriophage replication (in whole cells) have not been observed in the benzo[a]pyrene cultures.