[Activity of intracellular enzymes in Bacillus thuringiensis prospores and sporangia]

The activity of endocellular enzymes (alkaline phosphatase, protease, glucose dehydrogenase, aldolase, malate dehydrogenase, NADH dehydrogenase, NADH oxidase) was studied in isolated prospores and sporangia as well as in vegetative cells of Bacillus thuringiensis strains, one of which produced crystals and one did not. The activity of malate dehydrogenase and NADH dehydrogenase was high in prospores of the both strains at the fifth and sixth stages of spore formation. The strain which did not produce crystals differed from the parent strain by a higher aldolase activity at all of the growth stages and by an abrupt increase in the activity of hydrolytic enzymes in sporangia (in the cytoplasm of the parent cells).