title: Structural characterization of an oligosaccharide made by Neisseria sicca.
abstract: Neisseria sicca 4320 expresses two carbohydrate-containing components with sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis mobilities that resemble those of lipooligosaccharide and lipopolysaccharide. Using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization--time of flight and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, we characterized a disaccharide carbohydrate repeating unit expressed by this strain. Gas chromatography identified the sugars composing the unit as rhamnose and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine. Glycosidase digestion confirmed the identity of the nonreducing terminal sugar of the disaccharide and established its beta-anomeric configuration. Mass spectrometry analysis and lectin binding were used to verify the linkages within the disaccharide repeat. The results revealed that the disaccharide repeat is [-4) beta-L-rhamnose (1-3) beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (1-] with an N-acetyl-D-glucosamine nonreducing terminus. This work is the first structural characterization of a molecule that possesses rhamnose in the genus Neisseria.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
authors.forename: Ellen T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bullock
authors.forename: Karen V
authors.initials: KV
authors.lastname: Swanson
authors.forename: J McLeod
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Griffiss
authors.forename: Vernon N
authors.initials: VN
authors.lastname: Reinhold
authors.forename: Clinton J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Daniel C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D000117:Acetylglucosamine / Q000737:chemistry; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D004187:Disaccharides / Q000737:chemistry; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D015394:Molecular Structure; D042808:Neisseria sicca / Q000737:chemistry*; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D012210:Rhamnose / Q000737:chemistry; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization
chemical_list: D004187:Disaccharides; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D012210:Rhamnose; D000117:Acetylglucosamine