title: Galactosamine in walls of slow-growing mycobacteria.
abstract: Galactosamine was found consistently as a minor component of the envelope of five species of slow-growing mycobacteria, including all the major human pathogens, but not three rapid-growing species. The amino sugar was a component of the arabinogalactan of the cell wall skeleton, and occurred at the level of about one residue per arabinogalactan chain. Its amino group was in the free, un-N-acetylated state. Examination of oligosaccharides released by partial acid hydrolysis of arabinogalactan by fast atom bombardment-MS and gas chromatography-MS identified a series of oligoarabinans, each possessing one GalN unit, linked to position 2 of arabinose. It is proposed that the GalN residues occur as stub branches of 1-->5-linked arabinose chains in the arabinogalactan. Possible functions of GalN are discussed.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Medical Research, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, U.K.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Draper
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Khoo
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chatterjee
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dell
authors.forename: H R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Morris
mesh_terms: D002240:Carbohydrate Sequence; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000737:chemistry; D005685:Galactans / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005688:Galactosamine / Q000032:analysis*; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006801:Humans; D006868:Hydrolysis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009161:Mycobacterium / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000254:growth & development*; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000737:chemistry; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016339:Spectrometry, Mass, Fast Atom Bombardment
chemical_list: D005685:Galactans; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D005688:Galactosamine; C005653:arabinogalactan