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THYMIDINE DIPHOSPHATE-L-RHAMNOSE METABOLISM IN SMOOTH AND ROUGH STRAINS OF ESCHERICHIA COLI AND SALMONELLA WESLACO

^a Department of Pharmacology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri

ABSTRACT

OKAZAKI, TUNEKO (Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Mo.), JACK L. STOMINGER, AND REIJI OKAZAKI. Thymidine diphosphate-L-rhamnose metabolism in smooth and rough strains of Escherichia coli and Salmonella weslaco. J. Bacteriol. 86:118–124. 1963.—Logarithmic-phase cells of Escherichia coli O18, which have rhamnose in their lipopolysaccharide, contained only traces of thymidine diphosphate (TDP)-L-rhamnose. Extracts of this organism, however, catalyzed the synthesis of TDP-L-rhamnose from TDP-D-glucose. On the other hand, cells of E. coli R44, a rough variant of this strain which contains no rhamnose in its lipopolysaccharide, contained a large amount of TDP-L-rhamnose. Like the smooth form, this organism was able to synthesize TDP-L-rhamnose. The rough variant is apparently a mutant blocked in some manner in utilization of TDP-L-rhamnose for lipopolysaccharide synthesis. Similar studies of smooth (rhamnose-containing) and rough (rhamnose-lacking) forms of Salmonella weslaco showed that both organisms can synthesize TDP-L-rhamnose from TDP-D-glucose. In contrast to the smooth and rough forms of E. coli O18, only traces of TDP-L-rhamnose were detected in extracts of both forms. A second thymidine diphosphosugar compound isolated from E. coli R44 is similar or identical to TDP-X, previously isolated from E. coli Y-10.

¹ Present address: Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Nagoya, Nagoya, Japan.