Proteinases produced by pseudomonads isolated from sheep fleece

Fifty-nine pseudomonads isolated from sheep fleece were able to grow on a minimal salts medium with glycerol as the sole source of carbon and energy. Many of these isolates showed additional growth when collagen-based or wool-based substrates were included in the medium. After several days of incubation with these substrates, the nature of soluble proteins present in the growth medium was investigated by using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Up to four major bands of protein with proteinase activity and with widely different electrophoretic mobilities were detected in the gels; one of the bands appeared as a doublet at times. The electrophoretic mobilities of each class of proteinase were similar for the different pseudomonads examined, but the proteinase (or combination of proteinases) induced depended on the protein substrate and strain or species of pseudomonad used.