Year-end Sale % OFF 
Abstract
Lipoteichoic acid is a major lipid-anchored polymer in Gram-positive bacteria such as Bacillus subtilis. This polymer typically consists of repeating phosphoglycerol or phosphoribitol units and therefore has a predominant negative charge. The repeating units are attached to a glycolipid anchor which has a diacylglycerol (DAG) moiety attached to a dihexopyranose head group. D-alanylation is known as the major modification of lipoteichoic acid, which partially neutralizes the polymer and plays important roles in bacterial survival and resistance to the host immune system. The biosynthesis pathways of the glycolipid anchor and lipoteichoic acid have been fully characterized. However, the exact mechanism of D-alanyl transfer from the cytosol to cell surface lipoteichoic acid remains unclear. Here I report the use of mass spectrometry in the identification of intermediate species in the biosynthesis and D-alanylation of lipoteichoic acid: the glycolipid anchor, nascent lipoteichoic acid primer with one phosphoglycerol unit, as well as mono- and di-alanylated forms of the lipoteichoic acid primer. Monitoring these species as well as the recently reported D-alanyl-phosphatidyl glycerol would aid in shedding light on the mechanism of the D-alanylation pathway of lipoteichoic acid.
Highlights
Phospholipids are the dominant cell membrane component in most bacteria[1] which render bacterial cell surface negatively charged
Aminoacylated lipids play an apparent role in surface charge modulation of Gram-positive bacteria[5]
The Bligh and Dyer method[24] carried out at an icy temperature appeared to be essential for successful extraction of species that are almost certainly lipoteichoic acid primer and its mono- and di-alanylated derivatives
Summary
Phospholipids are the dominant cell membrane component in most bacteria[1] which render bacterial cell surface negatively charged. This feature makes bacterial membrane the easy target of host immune molecules such as cationic antibiotic peptides[2,3,4]. It should be specified that the author refers to type I LTA. Double bonds should look identical in the figures. YL: I will redraw the molecular figures to make the two lines in double bonds in the same thickness and redraw the glucosyl rings in chair conformation
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
