Abstract
Erwinia stewartii produced an extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) in a culture medium consisting of dialyzed yeast extract, glucose, and calcium carbonate. The EPS was precipitated from the concentrated culture supernatant by addition of five volumes of ethanol and was purified by passing through QAE- and CM-Sephadex ion-exchange columns. The acid hydrolysate of the EPS consisted of glucose, galactose and glucuronic acid at a ratio of 10 : 5 : 1 (by weight) as determined by paper and gas chromatography. Galactosyl-transferase activity was detected in a soluble fraction of sonicated bacterial cells. This enzyme was capable of transferring galactose from UDP-galactose to N-acetylglucose, N-acetyl-galactose, glucose, galactose and the EPS from E. stewartii. These results suggest that the galactosyltransferase may play a rôle in the EPS biosynthesis by E. stewartii.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
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 call
