[Bacteriocins and their ecological position].

The author discusses the position of bacteriocins in ecology on the basis of the data accumulated to date in the speciality literature, referring to: (a)the great and varied number of bacteriocinogenic bacterial strains; (b)the classification of bacteriocins in terms of their structure, chemical composition and physico-chemical properties; (c)spectrum of activity; (d)elements of differentiation and similarity with other ecologic systems (virsuses, the genetic entities of other microorganisms, interrelations, bacteriocinogeny and certain genetic recombination phenomena). Bacteriocinogeny is regarded as a biologic process, the result of natural selection. Stress is laid on the importance of the bacteriocinogenic and bacteriocinosensitive properties, next to the lysogeny of bacteria, for the classification of microorganisms. It is foreseen that in the future purified bacteriocins may perhaps be used in therapy, at least in certain cases.