Identification of the sugars involved in mycobacterial cell aggregation.
Incubation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and M smegmatis cells with the sugar components of their surface-exposed glycans demonstrated that D-arabinose but not alpha-D-glucose or D-mannose, led to the dispersion of the large clumps formed by the bacilli in stationary liquid cultures. These results confirm the presence of arabinose-containing glycans on the mycobacterial cell surface and demonstrate the implication of selective sugars in cell aggregation, suggesting that the clumping of mycobacterial cells is probably mediated by lectin-carbohydrate interactions.
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Institut de Pharmacologie et de Biologie Structurale du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Toulouse, France.
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D001089:Arabinose / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000502:physiology*; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D001667:Binding, Competitive; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000494:pharmacology; D037102:Lectins / Q000502:physiology; D009161:Mycobacterium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*
D002241:Carbohydrates; D037102:Lectins; D011134:Polysaccharides; D001089:Arabinose