BACTERIOCINS PRODUCED BY RUMINAL BACTERIA

摘要

The invention relates to proteinaceous antibiotics, known as bacteriocins, that are produced by ruminal bacteria selected from Butyrivibrio spp. These bacteriocins are generally resistant towards digestion by gastric proteases, may exhibit a high degree of specificity or broad spectrum activity with respect to the microorganisms against which they are effective, and are effective in anaerobic conditions and ineffective in atmospheric conditions. Ruminal isolates capable of producing such bacteriocins include Gram Positive microorganisms characterised by anaerobiosis, the production of butyric acid as a major metabolic end product, resistance to Nalidixic acid, and a vibrioid cellular shape, and are related based on analysis of 16s rRNA gene sequences.