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Bacterial Virus Forcing of Bacterial O-Antigen Shields: Lessons From Coliphages
Version 1
: Received: 10 November 2023 / Approved: 13 November 2023 / Online: 14 November 2023 (07:50:09 CET)
A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.
Letarov, A.V. Bacterial Virus Forcing of Bacterial O-Antigen Shields: Lessons from Coliphages. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 17390. Letarov, A.V. Bacterial Virus Forcing of Bacterial O-Antigen Shields: Lessons from Coliphages. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 17390.
Abstract
Presence of lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) in the outer layer of outer membranes (OMs) is an almost universal molecular signature of Gram-negative bacteria. The O-antigen or O-polysaccharide (OPS) chains attach to millions of LPS molecule to form a continuous layer on the surface of most of Escherichia coli strains. OPS structure is one of the most variable features of bacteria, with about 200 E. coli O-serotypes currently described. In this review a analyze accumulating evidence suggesting that a vast majority of these OPS types provide robust shields that restrict the access of large molecules to the OM surface. Sophisticated mechanisms employed by bacteriophages to penetrate the OPS barrier are also considered. These are initiated with specific recognition of OPS molecules by phage receptor-binding proteins (RBP), or of other cell-surface molecules that are exposed above the OPS layer. Only after can virions gain access to secondary receptors found closer to the OM surface. The mechanisms of breaking through OPS in most if not all cases appear to rely on mechanical force generated by molecular motors of processive depolymerization or deacetylation of cell surface polysaccharides by enzymatically active RBPs, or by internal rearrangement of the virion.
Keywords
bacteriophage; host range; O antigen; E. coli; bacteriophage adsorption
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Virology
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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