In general, inhibition of fatty acid biosynthesis by the addition of cerulenin to the medium caused an increase in the polyhydroxyalkanoates and glycogen content in cells. The mutants affected in triacylglycerol accumulation used in this study also produced increased amounts of glycogen and eventually of polyhydroxyalkanoates during cultivation on gluconate in comparison

with the wild type. This effect was more evident in the mutant PDM41 than in the atf1ΩKm mutant. When the biosynthesis of triacylglycerols is impaired by inhibition of the de novo fatty acid biosynthesis Ipilimumab mw pathway or the disruption of a gene involved in triacylglycerol accumulation, carbon distribution through metabolism changes and intermediates become more available for the synthesis of glycogen and polyhydroxyalkanoates in cells. These approaches contribute toward a better understanding of storage compound metabolism and the interaction of pathways in Rhodococcus species, which could be of interest for planning further metabolic manipulation of cells for biotechnological purposes. We are grateful to Dr Alexander Steinbüchel for providing R. opacus mutant PDM41.

This study was financially supported by the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica, Argentina (Project PME no. 216) and SCyT of the University of Patagonia San Juan Bosco. H.M. Alvarez is a career investigator and M.A. Hernández a scholarship holder of the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Trichostatin A cell line Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina. “
“Antisense oligonucleotides (AS-ODN) target genes in a sequence-specific manner inhibit gene function

and have potential use as antimicrobial agents. Cell barriers, such as peptidoglycan, cell surface proteins and lipopolysaccharide membranes, prevent delivery of AS-ODN into the bacterial cell, limiting their use as an effective treatment option. The β-lactam antibiotic penicillin was examined for its ability to deliver phosphorothioate oligodeoxyribonucleotides (PS-ODNs) and γ32 P-ODN into Streptococcus mutans OMZ175. Treatment of lag-phase S. mutans OMZ175 cells with penicillin and FBA (PS-ODN targeting the fructose-biphosphate aldolase gene), resulted in prolonged suppression of growth (> 24 h) and fba expression (656.9 ± 194.4-fold O-methylated flavonoid decrease at 5 h). Suppression of both cell growth and fba expression corresponded with a greater amount of γ32 P-ODN becoming cell associated, with a maximum γ32 P-ODN concentration per cell achieved 5 h after penicillin treatment (6.50 ± 1.39 × 108 molecules per CFU). This study confirms that for S. mutans OMZ175, the peptidoglycan layer acts as a major barrier preventing AS-ODN penetration and suggests that the use of agents such as penicillin that interfere with peptidoglycan integrity can significantly increase the uptake of PS-ODN by these cells.