Chemical properties of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) isolated from Vibrio anguillarum PT514

Abstract

Vibrio anguillarum, one of the causative agents of fish vibriosis, is serologically and biochemically divided into three groups (A, B and C). The chemical composition and molecular architecture of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) isolated from V. anguillarum PT 514, which belongs to serogroup B, were investigated. The LPS contained glucose (Glc), fructose (Fru), L-glycero-D-mannoheptose (L-D Hep), glucosamine (GlcN) and 4-amino-4,6-dideoxyglucose as sugar constituents in molar ratios of 8.9:0.7:3.0:1.1:1.6. Sephadex G-50 gel-chromatography of a degraded polysaccharide fraction separated from the LPS by 5% acetic acid hydrolysis suggested that the O-specific polysaccharide region consists of, in average, as much as 29 moles of Glc per 3 moles of L-D Hep, while the core polysaccharide contains at least Glc, L-D Hep and GlcN in molar ratios of 3.2 : 3.0 : 0.2. Fru and 4-amino-4,6-dideoxyglucose components were released from LPS on weak-acid hydrolysis, indicating that PT 514 LPS is distinguishable from those of Vibrio anguillarum belonging to the other serogroups. 2-Keto-3-deoxyoctonate (KDO), a common sugar constituent of gram-negative bacterial LPS, was not detected by Weissbach's color reaction under the conventional hydrolysis condition, but O-phosphoryl KDO was found in the strong-acid hydrolysate (4 M HCl, 100 C, 45 min). This substance was identical, at least in high-voltage paper electrophoresis, to 5-O-phosphoryl KDO.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)