Trehalose metabolism in germinating spores of Streptomyces hygroscopicus.

Evidence is presented which indicates that utilization of trehalose is an early event in spore germination in Streptomyces hygroscopicus. Early in spore germination and before any increase in cell mass, the activity of trehalase increased more than 15-fold, while the intracellular content of trehalose fell to very low levels. On the other hand, increased activity of the trehalose phosphate synthetase or disappearance of glycogen did not occur until later in germination, during which time cell mass was also increasing.