Abstract
Several strains of Proteus mirabilis isolated from screwworm ( Cochliomyia hominivorax ) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) larvae were found to produce a bactericidal substance (mirabilicide). The mirabilicide was extracted from culture filtrates at pH 2.9 with chloroform. Both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria were susceptible to mirabilicide. A coagulase-positive strain of Staphylococcus aureus (boil isolate) was killed 4 min; however, a strain of Providencia rettgeri (formerly in the genus Proteus ) isolated from screwworm larvae showed significant resistance to the mirabilicide. Ultrastructural and morphological changes in P. mirabilis cells exposed to mirabilicide were limited to cytoplasmic changes, while Salmonella typhimurium cells showed both cytoplasmic changes and cell wall modifications, although the cells did not lyse. Mirabilicide may play a significant role in the establishment of the nonpurulent, larval-infested wound.
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