Inhibition of bacterial conjugation by cell wall preparations

The restrictions imposed by the specificity of the association of competent mating cells must, in some measure, contribute to species identity. Such restrictions would be operative in an environment containing different microbial species capable of sexual reproduction. During sexual reproduction in bacteria, it is reasonable to assume that the initial effective surface contact between male and female cells involves areas of complementary structure ( Sneath and Lederberg, 1961) and that this initial linkage is followed by the formation of a conjugation bridge. If this assumption is correct it would be expected that the cell wall derived from the male or female cell would inhibit conjugation between viable male and female cells by competition for complementary sites. In this report the inhibition of conjugation in E. coli by cell wall will be described.