Elektronenoptische und chemische Untersuchungen an Zellwänden der Blaualge Phormidium uncinatum

Abstract

Quantitative chemical analysis of isolated cell walls of Phormidium uncinatum demonstrated the presence of a mucopolymer component resembling in composition that found in the cell walls of gramnegative bacteria. Electronmicroscopical investigations showed that each cell of a filament of Phormidium is lined with a mucopolymer supporting membrane, which is responsible for the rigidity of the cell wall and which can be digested by lysozyme. Growing filaments of Phormidium, exposed to penicillin, produce well recognizable localized defects in the mucopolymer layer of their cell walls and in the corresponding layers of septa still growing. These defects appear to indicate regions of growth. Electronmicroscopical examination of thin sections of intact filaments extend and confirm the morphological observations on isolated cell walls. The demonstration in blue-green algae of a mucopolymer cell wall component closely resembling that previously found in cell walls of bacteria provides further evidence for a taxonomic relationship between the two classes of organisms.