title: Determination of murein precursors during the cell cycle of Escherichia coli.
abstract: A convenient and reliable method has been established that allows a quantitative determination of m-diamino[3H]pimelic acid-labelled murein precursors in 1 ml culture samples of Escherichia coli. Prior to separation by reversed-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography the lipid-linked intermediates were hydrolysed to release the muropeptides. The accuracy for the measurement of UDP-N-acetylmuramylpentapeptide (UDP-MurNAc-pentapeptide) was +/- 1.9% (SD), for undecaprenyl-P-P-MurNAc-pentapeptide (lipid I) +/- 10% (SD) and for undecaprenyl-P-P-(GlcNAc-beta 1----4)MurNAc-pentapeptide (lipid II) +/- 5% (SD). The ratio of UDP-MurNAc-pentapeptide:lipid I:lipid II was about 300:1:3 for E. coli MC4100. The relative cellular concentrations of all three precursor molecules were found not to vary throughout the cell cycle. It is concluded that elongation and division of the murein sacculus is not controlled by oscillations in the concentrations of these late murein precursors.
authors.affiliation: Max-Planck-Institut für Entwicklungsbiologie, Abteilung, Biochemie, Tübingen, FRG.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kohlrausch
authors.forename: F B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Wientjes
authors.forename: J V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Höltje
mesh_terms: D002453:Cell Cycle; D002455:Cell Division; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D010457:Peptidoglycan / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D011103:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Monosaccharides; D011104:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Oligosaccharides; D011105:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Sugars; D014538:Uridine Diphosphate N-Acetylmuramic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D014539:Uridine Diphosphate Sugars / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D010457:Peptidoglycan; D011103:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Monosaccharides; D011104:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Oligosaccharides; D011105:Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Sugars; D014538:Uridine Diphosphate N-Acetylmuramic Acid; D014539:Uridine Diphosphate Sugars; C002225:UDP-N-acetylmuramic acid pentapeptide; C062770:undecaprenyl diphosphate-(N-acetylglucosaminyl)(1-4)-N-acetylmuramoyl pentapeptide; C062771:undecaprenyl biphosphate-N-acetylmuramoyl-pentapeptide