[Utilization of inorganic sulfur sources by Staphylococcus aureus strains]

Staphylococcus aureus strains of different host-adapted variants (Meyer 1966) have been tested for their ability to use inorganic sulfur sources. All the 25 strains tested were able to utilize sodium sulfide as sulfur source in a medium similar to that described by Kloos and Pattee (1965). Using S. aureus strain 116/74 grown in a medium containing Na2-35S as the only sulfur source we studied incorporation and insertion of inorganic sulfide into sulfur containing amino acids. In disintegrated and fractionated cellular material we could find 35S labelled homocystine and methionine as major compounds, and cystine, cysteic acid, homocysteic acid, and beta-sulphopyruvate as minor compounds. The occurrence of homocystine and the sulfonic acids in bacterial proteins is rather uncommon.