Question

How can you tell if if lysozyme and/or egg white is effective against M. Luteus? Is lysozyme or egg white more effective against M. Luteus? How can you tell?

Answer 1

Lysozyme is effective against Micrococcus luteus, a gram-positive to gram variable cocci shaped, saprophytic bacteria, as it hydrolyses the β - 1,4- glycosidic linkage between N-acetylmuramic and N-acetylglucosamine in the proteoglycan layer of the bacterial cell membrane.

A study done by (Vehamme et al.,1988), it is clearly stated that hen egg white causes a major effect on the growth of M. luteus. The phenomenon was termed under substrate inhibition, in which the electrostatic potential of the negatively charged proteoglycan layer increases with the decrease in the ionic strength, which results in higher affinity between proteoglycan layer and lysozyme and favours a multipoint attachment of the lysozyme. Then, this lysozyme byu the process of hydrolysis, break down the β - 1,4- glycosidic linkage.

Reference:-

VERHAMME, I.M., VAN DEDEM, G.W. and LAUWERS, A.R., 1988. Ionic‐strength‐dependent substrate inhibition of the lysis of Micrococcus luteus by hen egg‐white lysozyme. European journal of biochemistry, 172(3), pp.615-620.