Chemicals which promote survival of ultraviolet-irradiated lon and ruv mutants of Escherichia coli K12

Abstract

The effects of postirradiation incubation with various chemicals structurally related to pantolactone on the survival of ultraviolet-irradiated Escherichia coli lon and ruv mutants were examined. Certain cyclic compounds with a butyrolactone, tetrahydrofuran, furan, tetrahydropyran, or 2-pyron ring showed substantial rescue activity in lon and (or) ruv mutants. In addition, several aliphatic, monocarboxylic acid salts, including hydrolysis products from pantolactone and butyrolactone, were also active in one or both of these mutants, especially pantoate and other hydroxy acid salts in the ruv bacterium. The two mutants differed considerably in their susceptibility spectra for the rescue actions of these compounds.