Spores of the <i>csA</i> mutant have altered heat and chemicals resistance properties compared to wild-type spores.

<p>Spores were treated to 75°C heat (A), 0.5 M hydrochloric acid (B) and 0.15 M sodium hydroxide (C) for 30 minutes after which the spores were incubated on HIS agar to determine the percentage of spore survival. The results represent the average of four independent experiments and error bars represent standard error of the mean. Asterisks indicate statistical difference at <i>p</i> ≤ 0.05. Wild-type, WT; <i>csA</i> mutant, <i>csA</i>-M; <i>csB</i>mutant, <i>csB-</i>M; <i>csA</i> mutant complemented, <i>csA</i>-C.