Structural characterization of an all-aminosugar-containing capsular polysaccharide from Colwellia psychrerythraea 34H

Colwellia psychrerythraea strain 34H, a Gram-negative bacterium isolated from Arctic marine sediments, is considered a model to study the adaptation to cold environments. Recently, we demonstrated that C. psychrerythraea 34H produces two different extracellular polysaccharides, a capsular polysaccharide and a medium released polysaccharide, which confer cryoprotection to the bacterium. In this study, we report the structure of an additional capsular polysaccharide produced by Colwellia grown at a different temperature. The structure was determined using chemical methods, and one- and two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy. The results showed a trisaccharide repeating unit made up of only amino-sugar residues: N-acetyl-galactosamine, 2,4-diacetamido-2,4,6-trideoxy-glucose (bacillosamine), and 2-acetamido-2-deoxyglucuronic acid with the following structure: →4)-β-d-GlcpNAcA-(1 →3)-β-d-QuipNAc4NAc-(1 →3)-β-d-GalpNAc-(1 →. The 3D model, generated in accordance with 1H,1H-NOE NMR correlations and consisting of ten repeating units, shows a helical structure. In contrast with the other extracellular polysaccharides produced from Colwellia at 4 °C, this molecule displays only a low ice recrystallization inhibition activity

Structural determination of the O-chain polysaccharide from the haloalkaliphilic Halomonas alkaliantarctica bacterium strain CRSS

In hypersaline environments there are plenty of microorganisms belonging to both Bacteria and Archaea domains. These extremophiles have developed biochemical adaptations which comprise the accumulation of molar concentrations of potassium and chloride and the biosynthesis and/or the accumulation of organic osmotic solutes (osmolytes) within the cytoplasm. Moreover, to maintain the turgor of the cells halophiles enhance the production of anionic phospholipids and alter the fatty acid composition of the membrane lipids, but very little is known about adaptational structural changes of the lipopolysaccharides (LPS), the main constituent of the outer leaflet of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria. The aim of this work is to investigate the chemical structure of these LPS in order to provide insight into the adaptation mechanism of halophiles to live at high salt concentration. For this, Halomonas alkaliantarctica, a haloalkaliphilic Gram-negative bacterium isolated from salt sediments of a saline lake in Cape Russell in the Antarctic continent, was cultivated and the LPS were extracted and analysed. The structure of the O-chain of the LPS from H. alkaliantarctica was determined by chemical analysis, 1-D and 2-D NMR spectroscopy. The polysaccharide was constituted of a linear trisaccharidic repeating unit as follows: -> 3)-b-L-Rhap-(1 -> 4)-a-L-Rhap-(1 -> 3)-a-L-Rhap-(1 -> A comparison among the O-chain structures of H. alkaliantarctica and other Halomonas species is also reporte

Structural investigation of the antagonist LPS from the cyanobacterium Oscillatoria planktothrix FP1

Cyanobacteria are aquatic and photosynthetic microorganisms, which contribute up to 30% of the yearly oxygen production on the earth. They have the distinction of being the oldest known fossils, more than 3.5 billion years old, and are one of the largest and most important groups of bacteria on earth. Cyanobacteria are an emerging source of potentially pharmacologically active products and, among these, there are the lipopolysaccharides. Despite their significant and well documented activity, very little is known about the cyanobacteria lipopolysaccharides (LPS) structure. The aim of this work is to investigate the structure of the highly TLR4-antagonist lipopolysaccharide from the cyanobacterium Oscillatoria plankthotrix FP1. The LPS was purified and analysed by means of chemical analysis and H-1 and C-13 NMR spectroscopy. The LPS was then degraded by Smith degradation, HF and acetic acid hydrolyses. All the obtained products were investigated in detail by chemical analysis, NMR spectroscopy and by mass spectrometry. The LPS consists of a high molecular mass and very complex molecule lacking Kdo and heptose residues, where the polysaccharide chain is mainly constituted by a backbone of 3-substituted alpha-L-rhamnose units. The core region is rich in galacturonic acid and mannose residues. Moreover a glycolipid portion, similar to Gram-negative lipid A, was identified. This was built up of a non phosphorylated (1'-> 6) linked glucosamine disaccharide, acylated with 3-hydroxylated fatty acids. In particular 3-hydroxypentadecanoic and 3-hydroxyesadecanoic acids were found, together with esadecanoic and tetradecanoic ones. Finally the presence of a galacturonic acid residue at 6-position of the distal glucosamine in place of the Kdo residue is suggested

Structural determination of the O-specific polysaccharide from Aeromonas hydrophila strain A19 (serogroup O:14) with S-layer

Bacteria belonging to the genus Aeromonas are Gram-negative mesophilic and essentially ubiquitous in the microbial biosphere; moreover they are considered very important pathogens in fish and responsible for a great variety of human infections. The virulence of Gram-negative bacteria is often associated with the structure of lipopolysaccharides, which consist of three regions covalently linked: the glycolipid (lipid A), the oligosaccharide region (core region) and the O-specific polysaccharide (O-chain, O-antigen). The O-chain region seems to play an important role in host-pathogen interaction. In the case of Aeromonas hydrophila the majority of pathogenic strains belongs to serogroups O:11, O:16, O:18 and O:34. In this paper, we report the complete structure of the O-chain of A. hydrophila strain A19 (serogroup O:14), a pathogenic strain isolated from European eels, which showed high virulence when tested in trout or mice. Dried cells were extracted by the PCP (phenol/chloroform/petroleum ether) method obtaining the lipopolysaccharide. After mild acid hydrolysis the lipid A was removed by centrifugation and the obtained polysaccharide was fully characterized by means of chemical analysis and one- and two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy

Structural Characterization of the Core Oligosaccharide Isolated from the Lipopolysaccharide of the Haloalkaliphilic Bacterium Salinivibrio sharmensis strain BAGT

Cyanobacteria are aquatic and photosynthetic microorganisms, which contribute up to 30% of the yearly oxygen production on the earth. They have the distinction of being the oldest known fossils, more than 3.5 billion years old, and are one of the largest and most important groups of bacteria on earth. Cyanobacteria are an emerging source of potentially pharmacologically active products and, among these, there are the lipopolysaccharides. Despite their significant and well documented activity, very little is known about the cyanobacteria lipopolysaccharides (LPS) structure. The aim of this work is to investigate the structure of the highly TLR4-antagonist lipopolysaccharide from the cyanobacterium Oscillatoria plankthotrix FP1. The LPS was purified and analysed by means of chemical analysis and 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The LPS was then degraded by Smith degradation, HF and acetic acid hydrolyses. All the obtained products were investigated in detail by chemical analysis, NMR spectroscopy and by mass spectrometry. The LPS consists of a high molecular mass and very complex molecule lacking Kdo and heptose residues, where the polysaccharide chain is mainly constituted by a backbone of 3-substituted α-l-rhamnose units. The core region is rich in galacturonic acid and mannose residues. Moreover a glycolipid portion, similar to Gram-negative lipid A, was identified. This was built up of a non phosphorylated (1′→6) linked glucosamine disaccharide, acylated with 3-hydroxylated fatty acids. In particular 3-hydroxypentadecanoic and 3-hydroxyesadecanoic acids were found, together with esadecanoic and tetradecanoic ones. Finally the presence of a galacturonic acid residue at 6-position of the distal glucosamine in place of the Kdo residue is suggested

The Lipid A from the Haloalkaliphilic Bacterium Salinivibrio sharmensis Strain BAGT

Lipid A is a major constituent of the lipopolysaccharides (or endotoxins), which are complex amphiphilic macromolecules anchored in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria. The glycolipid lipid A is known to possess the minimal chemical structure for LPSs endotoxic activity, able to cause septic shock. Lipid A isolated from extremophiles is interesting, since very few cases of pathogenic bacteria have been found among these microorganisms. In some cases their lipid A has shown to have an antagonist activity, i.e., it is able to interact with the immune system of the host without triggering a proinflammatory response by blocking binding of substances that could elicit such a response. However, the relationship between the structure and the activity of these molecules is far from being completely clear. A deeper knowledge of the lipid A chemical structure can help the understanding of these mechanisms. In this manuscript, we present our work on the complete structural characterization of the lipid A obtained from the lipopolysaccharides (LPS) of the haloalkaliphilic bacterium Salinivibrio sharmensis. Lipid A was obtained from the purified LPS by mild acid hydrolysis. The lipid A, which contains different number of fatty acids residues, and its partially deacylated derivatives were completely characterized by means of electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron (ESI FT-ICR) mass spectrometry and chemical analysis

Structural characterization of the O-chain polysaccharide from an environmentally beneficial bacterium Pseudomonas chlororaphis subsp. aureofaciens strain M71

Pseudomonas chlororaphis subsp. aureofaciens strain M71 was isolated from the root of a tomato plant and it was able to control in vivo Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis-lycopersici responsible for the tomato crown and root rot. Recently, strain M71 was evaluated even for its efficacy in controlling Seiridium cardinale, the causal agent of bark canker of common cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L). Strain M71 ability to persist on the tomato rhizosphere and on the aerial part of cypress plants could be related to the nature of the lipopolysaccharides (LPS) present on the outer membrane and in particular to the O-specific polysaccharide. A neutral O-specific polysaccharide was obtained by mild acid hydrolysis of the lipopolysaccharide from P. chlororaphis subsp. aureofaciens strain M71. By means of compositional analyses and NMR spectroscopy, the chemical repeating unit of the polymer was identified as the following linear trisaccharid