Production, by filamentous, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria, of a bacteriocin and of other antibiotics that kill related strains.

Colonies of sixty-five filamentous cyanobacteria were screened for the production of temperate phages and/or antibiotics on solid medium. None of them was observed to release phages. However, seven N2-fixing strains were found to produce antibiotics very active against other cyanobacteria. The antibiotic produced by Nostoc sp. 78-11A-E represents a bacteriocin of low molecular weight. Nostoc sp. ATCC 29132 appears to secrete, together with an antibiotic, a protein that inhibits its action.