Purification and characterization of Streptococcus mutans cell wall hydrolase from Bacillus subtilis YL-1004

Bacillus subtilis YL-1004 was isolated from soil for the development of agents to control dental caries. This strain produced an extracellular lytic enzyme that hydrolyzed the Streptococcus mutans cell wall. The lytic enzyme was purified to homogeneity by affinity chromatography and gel permeation chromatography to give a single band on SDS-PAGE and non-denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the enzyme was deduced from SDS-PAGE and gel chromatography to be 38 kDa and the pI to be 4.3 from isoelectric focusing. Sirty % of its lytic activity remained after incubation at 50°C for 30 min, and its optimal temperature was 37°C. The enzyme showed its highest activity at pH 8.0 and was stable at pHs ranging from 4.0 to 9.0. Treatment with several modifiers showed that a cysteine residue was involved in the active site of the enzyme. This lytic enzyme from Bacillus subtilis YL-1004 exhibited specificity towards Streptococci and also showed autolytic activity on Bacillus subtilis YL-1004.