Depleting proteins from the growth medium of Mycoplasma capricolum unmasks bacterium-derived enzymatic activities.

Mycoplasma constitutes a unique group of bacteria best characterized as lacking peptidoglycan and having one of the smallest genomes of all free-living prokaryotes. Members of this group also represent important pathogens of humans, animals, and plants. Our understanding of the interaction between these pathogens and their hosts is limited, partly due to our inadequate knowledge of the secreted enzymes and virulence factors of these pathogens.