1.E.23 The Bacillus Spore Morphogenesis and Germination Holin (BSH) Family

Real et al. (2005) have described a holin in Bacillus subtilis that is involved in spore morphogenesis and germination. The gene encoding this holin is ywcE, and mutants lacking its gene product have spores that exhibit outer coat defects. These spores lack the characteristic striatal pattern, and the outer coat fails to attach to the underlying inner coat. Finally, the mutant spores accumulate reduced amounts of dipicolinic acid. Homologues are found only in Bacillus species.