Using Mycobacterium smegmatis as a Bioindicator for Zinc-Limited Growth Conditions in MycobacteriaAllexa D. Burger *1, Jayna Wong *1, Endrei Marcantonio 1, Sladjana Prisic 1
1School of Life Sciences, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
This protocol details preparation of Zn2+-limited media, growth vessels, and seed cultures to produce Zn2+-limited ribosomes in mycobacteria. Traces of Zn2+ lead to Zn2+-limiting growth and we describe morphogenic features used as bioindicators to verify Zn2+ limitation in vitro in the model bacterium, Mycobacterium smegmatis, and the human pathogen M. tuberculosis.
