Pleiotropic Effects of a Butyrolactone-type Autoregulator on Mutants of Streptomyces griseus Blocked in Cytodifferentiation

Mutants of Streptomyces griseus blocked in cytodifferentiation regained their capacity to form differentiated mycelia and/or anthracycline pigments in the presence of butyrolactone-type autoregulatory effectors such as trans-2-(6′-methylheptanol-l′-yl)-3-hydroxymethyl-4-butanolide. In the pertinent indicator strains, the effect has been correlated with the increase of lipid synthesis, with changes in the composition of lipid fraction and with the restoration of the production of neutral proteinases. The results suggest that autoregulatory butyrolactones from streptomycetes stimulate cytodifferentiation of their producers at an early stage of development.