Acceleration of hyaluronidase production in the course of batch cultivation of Clostridium perfringens can be achieved with bacteriolytic enzymes

As Clostridium perfringens hyaluronidase has cell-bound enzyme features, an enzymatic approach has been designed to facilitate the release of hyaluronidase into culture through increasing the clostridial cell wall permeability. As a result of the application of lytic peptidase from Actinomyces rutgersensis, beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase and beta-N-acetylmuramidase (both from Bacillus subtilis) commercially available preparations at the end of the producer's exponential growth phase, a 5.3-, 4.8- and 4.0-fold acceleration, respectively (but no enhancement), of hyaluronidase production in the course of batch cultivation of Cl. perfringens has been achieved. This also resulted in an approximately 10-fold reduction in undesirable side lecithinase activity irrespective of the bacteriolytic enzyme preparation used.