Conformation of Single and Interacting Lipopolysaccharide Surfaces Bearing O-Side Chains.

ABSTRACT: The outer surfaces of Gram-negative bacteria are composed of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) molecules exposing oligo- and polysaccharides to the aqueous environment. This unique, structurally complex biological interface is of great scientific interest as it mediates the interaction of bacteria with antimicrobial agents as well as with neighboring bacteria in colonies and biofilms. Structural studies on LPS surfaces, however, have so far dealt almost exclusively with rough mutant LPS of reduced molecular complexity and limited biological relevance. Here, by using neutron reflectometry, we structurally characterize planar monolayers of wild-type LPS from Escherichia coli O55:B5 featuring strain-specific O-side chains in the presence and absence of divalent cations and under controlled interaction

SUBMITTER: Rodriguez-Loureiro I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5954297 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature