Structural analysis of the lipopolysaccharide from nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae strain R2846

• We here report the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) structures expressed by nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae R2846, a strain whose complete genome sequence has recently been obtained. Results were obtained by using NMR techniques and ESI-MS on O-deacylated LPS and core oligosaccharide material (OS) as well as ESI-MSn on permethylated dephosphorylated OS. A beta-D-Glcp-(1 -> 4)-D-alpha-D-Hepp-(1 -> 6)-beta-D-Glcp-(1 -> 4) unit was found linked to the proximal heptose (HepI) of the conserved triheptosyl inner-core moiety, L-alpha-D-Hepp-(1 -> 2)-[PEtn -> 6]-L-alpha-D-Hepp-(1 -> 3)-L-alpha-D-Hepp-(1 -> 5)-[PPEtn -> 4]-alpha-Kdo-(2 -> 6)-lipid A. The beta-D-Glcp (GlcI) linked to HepI was also branched with oligosaccharide extensions from O-4 and O-6. O-4 of GlcI was substituted with sialyllacto-N-neotetraose [alpha-Neu5Ac-(2 -> 3)-beta-D-Galp-(1 -> 4)-beta-GlcpNAc-(1 -> 3)-beta-D-Galp-(1 -> 4)-beta-D-Glcp-(1 ->] and the related structure [(PEtn -> 6)-alpha-D-GalpNAc-(1 -> 6)-beta-D-Galp-(1 -> 4)-beta-D-GlcpNAc-(1 -> 3)-beta-D-Galp-(1 -> 4)-beta-Glcp-(1-]. The distal heptose (HepIII) was substituted at O-2 by beta-D-Gal. Phosphate, phosphoethanolamine, phosphocholine, acetate, and glycine were found to substitute the core oligosaccharide. Two heptosyltransferase genes, losB1 and losB2, have been identified from the R2846 genome sequence and are candidates to add the noncore heptose to the LPS. Mutant strain R2846losB1 did not show DD-heptose in the extension from HepI but still contained minor quantities of LD-heptose at the same position, indicating that the losB1 gene is required to add DD-heptose to Glcl. The LPS from strain R2846losB1/losB2 expressed no noncore heptose, consistent with losB2 directing the addition of LD-heptose.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Biologi -- Biokemi och molekylärbiologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Biological Sciences -- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (hsv//eng)

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ref (subject category)

art (subject category)