Control of Synthesis of Wall Teichoic Acid in Phosphate-Starved Cultures of Bacillus subtilis W23

Cheah, S. C.; Hussey, Helen; Baddiley, J.

doi:10.1111/j.1432-1033.1981.tb05546.x

Cited by 12 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…As mentioned above, our cell wall analyses differ from those of other groups. Moreover, Cheah et al reported that they could not detect significant activity of TarD and other Tar proteins in phosphate-limited cultures of strain W23 (11). It is difficult to reconcile the indispensability and inactivity of the TarD enzyme under identical conditions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Teichoic Acid Is an Essential Polymer in Bacillus subtilis That Is Functionally Distinct from Teichuronic Acid

et al. 2004

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Wall teichoic acids are anionic, phosphate-rich polymers linked to the peptidoglycan of gram-positive bacteria. In Bacillus subtilis, the predominant wall teichoic acid types are poly(glycerol phosphate) in strain 168 and poly(ribitol phosphate) in strain W23, and they are synthesized by the tag and tar gene products, respectively. Growing evidence suggests that wall teichoic acids are essential in B. subtilis; however, it is widely believed that teichoic acids are dispensable under phosphate-limiting conditions. In the work reported here, we carefully studied the dispensability of teichoic acid under phosphate-limiting conditions by constructing three new mutants. These strains, having precise deletions in tagB, tagF, and tarD, were dependent on xyloseinducible complementation from a distal locus (amyE) for growth. The tarD deletion interrupted poly(ribitol phosphate) synthesis in B. subtilis and represents a unique deletion of a tar gene. When teichoic acid biosynthetic proteins were depleted, the mutants showed a coccoid morphology and cell wall thickening. The new wall teichoic acid biogenesis mutants generated in this work and a previously reported tagD mutant were not viable under phosphate-limiting conditions in the absence of complementation. Cell wall analysis of B. subtilis grown under phosphate-limited conditions showed that teichoic acid contributed approximately one-third of the wall anionic content. These data suggest that wall teichoic acid has an essential function in B. subtilis that cannot be replaced by teichuronic acid.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Teichoic Acid Is an Essential Polymer in Bacillus subtilis That Is Functionally Distinct from Teichuronic Acid

et al. 2004

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“…Most of the enzymes involved in WTA synthesis are almost undetectable during balanced growth of strain W23 at low concentrations of P i in chemostat cultures, while at 4 mM P i they are maximally expressed (87,88). The teichuronic acid operon (tua) belongs to the Pho regulon (231), and hence phosphate limitation induces its transcription (286,452).…”

Section: Mutants Defective In Lta and Wta Assemblymentioning

confidence: 99%

A Continuum of Anionic Charge: Structures and Functions ofd-Alanyl-Teichoic Acids in Gram-Positive Bacteria

Neuhaus

Baddiley

2003

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev

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900

1,097

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SUMMARY Teichoic acids (TAs) are major wall and membrane components of most gram-positive bacteria. With few exceptions, they are polymers of glycerol-phosphate or ribitol-phosphate to which are attached glycosyl and d-alanyl ester residues. Wall TA is attached to peptidoglycan via a linkage unit, whereas lipoteichoic acid is attached to glycolipid intercalated in the membrane. Together with peptidoglycan, these polymers make up a polyanionic matrix that functions in (i) cation homeostasis; (ii) trafficking of ions, nutrients, proteins, and antibiotics; (iii) regulation of autolysins; and (iv) presentation of envelope proteins. The esterification of TAs with d-alanyl esters provides a means of modulating the net anionic charge, determining the cationic binding capacity, and displaying cations in the wall. This review addresses the structures and functions of d-alanyl-TAs, the d-alanylation system encoded by the dlt operon, and the roles of TAs in cell growth. The importance of dlt in the physiology of many organisms is illustrated by the variety of mutant phenotypes. In addition, advances in our understanding of d-alanyl ester function in virulence and host-mediated responses have been made possible through targeted mutagenesis of dlt. Studies of the mechanism of d-alanylation have identified two potential targets of antibacterial action and provided possible screening reactions for designing novel agents targeted to d-alanyl-TA synthesis.

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“…Linkage unit synthesis (0) was measured in toluenized cells(Hancock, 198 1Variation of CDPglycerol pyrophosphorylase, CDPribitol pyrophosphorylase and poly(ribito1 phosphate) polymerase activities in B. subtilis W23 grown under balanced conditions at various medium phosphate concentrations. Poly(ribito1 phosphate) polymerase activity (A) was measured in membranes prepared by the method ofCheah et al (1981). CDPribitol pyrophosphorylase (A) and CDPglycerol pyrophosphorylase (0) were measured in toluenized cells.…”

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Control of Synthesis of Wall Teichoic Acid during Balanced Growth of Bacillus subtilis W23

et al. 1982

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Enzymes involved in the synthesis of teichoic acid and its linkage to the wall in Bacillus subtilis W23 were measured in chemostat cultures growing at equilibrium at a dilution rate of 0.2 h-1 in different concentrations of inorganic phosphate. All the enzymes, except teichoic acid glucosyl transferase, which was insensitive to changes in phosphate concentration, were almost undetectable at 0.5 mM-phosphate. At higher phosphate concentrations the changes in activity of the enzymes of linkage unit synthesis were sufficient to account for the changes in the rate of incorporation of teichoic acid into the wall in vivo. Between 3.5 and 4.5 mM-phosphate the amount of teichoic acid synthesized in vivo increased, but no increase in the ability of toluenized bacteria to synthesize teichoic acid could be detected. Allosteric regulation might therefore be important at high phosphate concentrations. Bacteria maintained a constant ATP content and a constant adenylate energy charge during chemostat growth at all phosphate concentrations.

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Control of Synthesis of Wall Teichoic Acid in Phosphate-Starved Cultures of Bacillus subtilis W23

Cited by 12 publications

References 9 publications

Teichoic Acid Is an Essential Polymer in Bacillus subtilis That Is Functionally Distinct from Teichuronic Acid

Teichoic Acid Is an Essential Polymer in Bacillus subtilis That Is Functionally Distinct from Teichuronic Acid

A Continuum of Anionic Charge: Structures and Functions ofd-Alanyl-Teichoic Acids in Gram-Positive Bacteria

Control of Synthesis of Wall Teichoic Acid during Balanced Growth of Bacillus subtilis W23

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