Further Evidence for the Structure of the Teichoic Acids from Bacillus stearothermophilus B65 and Bacillus subtilis var. niger WM

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Abstract
Bacillus stearothermophilus B65 and Bacillus subtilis var. niger WM both contain teichoic acids in their walls composed of glycerol, phosphate and glucose. The 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum of B. stearothermophilus teichoic acid showed 13C-31P coupling on the signals from the C-5 and C-6 carbon atoms of the glucose molecule and an alpha-glucosidic linkage between glucose and the C-1 atom of the glycerol moiety. These data are consistent with a poly[glucosylglycerol phosphate] as the cell-wall teichoic acid in this organism. B. subtilis var. niger WM teichoic acid was oxidized by periodate and incubated in glycine buffer at pH 10.5. This treatment did not significantly increase the phosphomonoester content (by beta-elimination of the phosphate groups) of the teichoic acid molecule (7.1 to 9.5%), which is in accordance with earlier data derived from 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy [De Boer et al. (1976) Eur. J. Biochem. 62, 1-6], that in this organism the glucose is not an integral part of the polymer chain. Similar treatment of B. stearothermophilus B65 teichoic acid increased the phosphomonoester content of the preparation from 0.15 to 68.1%.

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