[Mechanisms of the bactericidal action of hydrogen peroxide]

The comparative study of some aspects of the bactericidal action of H2O2 on Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacterium subtilis wild-type cells and their mutants with lesions in the systems of the reparation of DNA has been carried out. Hydrogen peroxide has been shown to cause disturbances in the structure and permeability of the cell wall, the cytoplasmic membrane, as well as to induce ribosomal lesions and the ruptures of bacterial DNA. The activity of the systems responsible for the reparation of lesions in the cell genome plays an important role in the resistance of bacteria to H2O2.