Mutants of Bacillus subtilis affected in spore outgrowth

Six mutants of Bacillus subtilis 168 that are temperature-sensitive in spore outgrowth were isolated. The outgrowth process proceeds normally at 35 degrees C, but at the non-permissive temperature (47 degrees C) it is arrested at a specific stage characteristic for each mutant strain. The mutants are not altered in vegetative growth whether at 35 degrees C or at 47 degrees C. They were characterized for their ability to synthesize RNA, proteins and DNA during outgrowth. A mutant defective in spore germination was also isolated; less than 5% of its spores can germinate at any of the temperatures tested. The mutations were mapped by means of transduction and transformation. The isolation of a number of outgrowth mutants which map at different loci and which affect outgrowth at different times is discussed in relation to the regulation of this process.