2Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Center for Medicine and Biosciences, Parkallee 10, 23845 Borstel, Germany; fax: (49-4537) 188-632
3Institute of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Lodz, Banacha 12/16, 90-237 Lodz, Poland; fax: (48-42) 678-4932
4Swietokrzyska Academy, 25-406 Kielce, Poland
* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received February 19, 2004; Revision received April 5, 2004
The structures of the O-polysaccharides of the lipopolysaccharides of Proteus mirabilis O7 and O49 were determined by chemical methods, mass spectrometry, including MS/MS, and NMR spectroscopy, including experiments run in an H2O/D2O mixture to reveal correlations for NH protons. The O-polysaccharides were found to contain N-carboxyacetyl (malonyl) and N-(3-carboxypropanoyl) (succinyl) derivatives of 4-amino-4,6-dideoxyglucose (4-amino-4-deoxyquinovose, Qui4N), respectively. The behavior of Qui4N derivatives with the dicarboxylic acids under conditions of acid hydrolysis and methanolysis was studied using GLC-MS.
KEY WORDS: Proteus mirabilis, 4-amino-4,6-dideoxy-D-glucose, malonic acid, succinic acid, aspartic acid, O-polysaccharide, MS/MS