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Appl Environ Microbiol. 1984 February; 47(2): 301-306
Copyright © 1984, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Salt Stress Control of Intracellular Solutes in Streptomycetes Indigenous to Saline Soils

K. Killham and M. K. Firestone^*

Department of Plant and Soil Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

ABSTRACT

Actinomycetes were isolated from a number of saline and saline-sodic California soils. From these isolates, two species of Streptomyces (S. griseus and S. californicus) were selected to assess their physiological response to salinity. NaCl was more inhibitory to growth rates and specific growth yields than were equivalent concentrations of KCl. Intracellular concentrations of the free amino acid pool increased in response to salt stress. Whereas the neutral free amino acids proline, glutamine, and alanine accumulated as salinity increased, concentrations of the acidic free amino acids glutamate and aspartate were reduced. Accumulation of free amino acids by streptomycetes under salt stress suggests a response typical of procaryotes, although the specific amino acids involved differ from those associated with other gram-positive bacteria. Above a salinity threshold of about 0.75 M (–3.8 MPa), there was little further intracellular accumulation of free amino acids, whereas accumulation of K⁺ salts sharply increased.

^* Corresponding author.

Present address: Department of Soil Science, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, AB9 2UE, Scotland.

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