Structure and serological analysis of the Hafnia alvei 481-L O-specific polysaccharide containing phosphate in the backbone chain.

The lipopolysaccharide was extracted from cells of Hafnia alvei 481-L bacterial strain and, after mild acid hydrolysis, the O-specific polysaccharide was isolated and characterised. On the basis of chemical analyses and NMR spectroscopic studies of the polysaccharide and oligosaccharides obtained after Smith degradation, or hydrogen fluoride treatment, it was found that the repeating unit of the O-specific polysaccharide is a phosphorylated hexasaccharide: [see text]. The biological repeating unit of the H. alvei 481-L O-antigen has galactose phosphate at the nonreducing terminus. Serological tests indicate that this strain represents an individual serotype in the H. alvei genus.

Bicyclomycin and dihydrobicyclomycin inhibition kinetics of Escherichia coli rho-dependent transcription termination factor ATPase activity.

The primary site of action for the novel antibiotic, bicyclomycin, in Escherichia coli has been identified to be the rho transcription termination factor. The inhibition of rho poly(C)-stimulated hydrolysis of ATP by bicyclomycin has been found to proceed by a non-competitive, reversible pathway with respect to ATP (Ki = 20 microM). Inhibition by dihydrobicyclomycin was similar (Ki = 75 microM). No change in the inhibitory properties of the antibiotic was observed under the assay conditions with the two rho mutants, Cys202Gly and Cys202Ser, indicating that Cys-202 does not affect drug binding to rho. Prolonged incubation (32 degrees C, 12 h) of wild-type rho with bicyclomycin (20 mM) led to protein degradation and a slow, permanent loss of rho ATPase activity after dialysis. Evidence was obtained that trace amounts of proteases present with bicyclomycin were responsible for the observed protein degradation. Treatment of wild-type and mutant rho proteins with purified bicyclomycin (25 mM) led to approximately 80% loss of ATPase activity after dialysis with no apparent loss of protein. However, a reduction of the electrophoretic mobility of the bicyclomycin-treated rho versus wild-type rho was seen. Addition of either ATP or poly(C) to wild-type rho led to partial protection against bicyclomycin inactivation, while inclusion of both ligands provided near complete protection against inactivation. The observed loss of ATPase activity upon prolonged incubation of rho with excess purified bicyclomycin is attributed to the covalent modification of the protein by the antibiotic at multiple sites.

Transcription termination factor rho: the site of bicyclomycin inhibition in Escherichia coli.

Bicyclomycin is a novel, commercially important antibiotic. Information concerning the site of bicyclomycin inhibition in Escherichia coli has been obtained by the production of bicyclomycin resistant mutants by UV irradiation. Selection by growth in the presence of bicyclomycin of a plasmid clone library generated from a highly resistant mutant in recipient antibiotic-sensitive host cells (E. coli strain W3350) has led to the characterization of three different plasmids that confer drug resistance, which contained the gene encoding the transcription termination factor, rho. These mutant rho genes contained single base changes at nucleotide positions 656, 796, and 1009. Preliminary mechanistic information has been obtained by monitoring the polyC-dependent ATPase activity of rho in the absence and presence of bicyclomycin and dihydrobicyclomycin. Addition of bicyclomycin to aqueous solutions containing rho and ATP led to a decrease in the release of inorganic phosphate with an I50 value of 60-70 microM bicyclomycin. This inhibition is comparable to the drug concentration needed to inhibit bacterial growth on plates. No loss of activity was observed when a similar concentration of dihydrobicyclomycin was used in place of bicyclomycin, while use of 10-fold higher concentrations of this derivative led to partial rho inhibition. PolyC-dependent ATPase activity from partially purified rho isolated from the mutant BCMr108 was not inhibited by bicyclomycin at concentrations (200 microM) found to completely inhibit wild-type rho. These cumulative findings are consistent with the notion that bicyclomycin expresses its activity by interfering with the polyC-dependent ATPase activity of rho.

Kitasatosporia setae, an interesting actinomycete strain isolated from Spitsbergen soil.

The phenotypic and genotypic properties as well as cell chemistry of an interesting actinomycete, which converted certain azacarbazoles into highly cytotoxic derivatives, were established. The strain was also compared with two similar Japanese actinomycetes of Kitasatosporia gen. nov. A great resemblance between the strains was observed. Apart from similar phenotypic properties they were characterized by contents of both L- and meso-DAP, glycine and galactose as the main cell wall components. They proved to have the same phospholipid, glycolipid and fatty acid patterns. The guanine-plus-cytosine contents of the deoxyribonucleic acids of the strains averaged 72.5 and there was a high degree of homology between the DNAs of the strains (approximately 80%). These data provide evidence that the Spitsbergen isolate and the Japanese actinomycetes belong to one genomic species.