Electrophoretic Analysis of Lipopolysaccharides of Purple Nonsulfur Bacteria

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Abstract
Sodium deoxycholate gel electrophoresis was used to analyze the lipopolysaccharides of a variety of species and strains of purple nonsulfur bacteria. The electrophoretic migration patterns found for various lipopolysaccharides indicated their S or R characters, differences in their O-chain lengths, the presence or absence of unsubstituted core stubs, and the approximate sizes of the repeating units. The gel patterns were similar for closely related species (e.g., Rhodopseudomonas viridis and Rhodopseudomonas sulfoviridis or Rhodocyclus tenuis and Rhodocyclus purpureus). Species-specific migration patterns were noted for Rhodocyclus gelatinosus and Rhodopseudomonas viridis. Identical electrophoretic mobilities were observed for different chemo-/serotypes within the same species (e.g., Rhodopseudomonas palustris, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, and Rhodocyclus tenuis). A good correlation between chemo-serotypes and migration patterns was observed. Thus, gel electrophoresis of lipopolysaccharides proved to be useful for chemotaxonomic investigations.