Department of Biomedical Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
Previous work showed that C. perfringens spores lacking the majority of alpha/beta-type small, acid-soluble spore proteins (SASPs) (termed alpha(-) beta(-) spores) exhibit greatly decreased resistance to moist heat and UV radiation. The current study demonstrated that these alpha(-) beta(-) spores had reduced resistance to hydrogen peroxide, hydrochloric acid, nitrous acid and formaldehyde. These results clearly demonstrate the important role of alpha/beta-type SASPs in the resistance of C. perfringens spores to chemicals.