Mutagenesis by mutator gene mutH1 in continuous cultures of Escherichia coli

Mutability as a function of growth rate was examined in bacterial strains containing mutator gene mutH1. The rate of mutation to bacteriophage T5 resistance was found to be proportional to rate of growth in glucose-limited chemostat cultures. This finding supports the hypothesis that the mutator mutH1 gene product increases the error frequency during deoxyribonucleic acid replication.