title: Structural characterization of the lipopolysaccharide O antigens of Burkholderia pseudomallei.
abstract: A serologically typical strain of Burkholderia pseudomallei (strain 304b) was found to produce two S-type lipopolysaccharides (LPS) differing in the chemical structures of their O-polysaccharide (O-PS) components. Structural analysis revealed that one O-antigenic polysaccharide (O-PS I) is an unbranched high-molecular-weight polymer of 1,3-linked 2-O-acetyl-6-deoxy-beta-D-manno-heptopyranose residues. The other LPS O antigen (O-PS II) is an unbranched polymer of repeating disaccharide units having the structure -3)-beta-D-glucopyranose-(1-3)-6-deoxy-alpha-L-talopyranose-(1- in which ca. 33% of the L-6dTalp residues bear 2-O-methyl and 4-O-acetyl substituents while the other L-6dTalp residues carry only 2-O-acetyl substituents. Analysis of a serologically atypical strain of B. pseudomallei (strain 824a) produced a single LPS O-PS which was chemically identical to the 6-deoxy-D-manno-hepan O-PS I. The production of two distinct LPS raises the interesting question of their relative immunogenicities and consequently their relative importance for diagnostic serology and for the possible development of conjugate vaccines.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biological Sciences, National Research Council, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: MacLean
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schollaardt
authors.forename: L E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Bryan
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ho
mesh_terms: D016957:Burkholderia pseudomallei / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D019081:O Antigens; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D019081:O Antigens; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial