 Bacteriocin

A bacteriocin is an antimicrobial peptide or protein produced by bacteria that acts against susceptible bacterial strains. The category describes a biological product and its antibacterial action; susceptibility depends on both the product and the target.^[ref]

Colicin E1 supplies a concrete mechanistic example. An experiment compared the complete protein with its C-terminus fragment in artificial lipid bilayers. Similar channel properties in the two forms localized pore-forming activity to that region. Membrane association could occur without the membrane potential needed for conducting channels to form.^[ref]

The experiment shows how to separate delivery, attachment and action of a bacterial product. It establishes a channel mechanism for the tested Colicin E1 system; the class name bacteriocin does not assign that same mechanism to every member. A growth-inhibition observation alone would not identify which molecular step caused the inhibition.