RT Journal Article SR Electronic(1) A1 Patrick, Sheila A1 Houston, Simon A1 Thacker, Zubin A1 Blakely, Garry W.YR 2009 T1 Mutational analysis of genes implicated in LPS and capsular polysaccharide biosynthesis in the opportunistic pathogen Bacteroides fragilis JF Microbiology, VO 155 IS 4 SP 1039 OP 1049 DO https://doi.org/10.1099/mic.0.025361-0 PB Microbiology Society, SN 1465-2080, AB The obligate anaerobe Bacteroides fragilis is a normal resident of the human gastrointestinal tract. The clinically derived B. fragilis strain NCTC 9343 produces an extensive array of extracellular polysaccharides (EPS), including antigenically distinct large, small and micro- capsules. The genome of NCTC 9343 encodes multiple gene clusters potentially involved in the biosynthesis of EPS, eight of which are implicated in production of the antigenically variable micro-capsule. We have developed a rapid and robust method for generating marked and markerless deletions, together with efficient electroporation using unmodified plasmid DNA to enable complementation of mutations. We show that deletion of a putative wzz homologue prevents production of high-molecular-mass polysaccharides (HMMPS), which form the micro-capsule. This observation suggests that micro-capsule HMMPS constitute the distal component of LPS in B. fragilis. The long chain length of this polysaccharide is strikingly different from classical enteric O-antigen, which consists of short-chain polysaccharides. We also demonstrate that deletion of a putative wbaP homologue prevents expression of the phase-variable large capsule and that expression can be restored by complementation. This suggests that synthesis of the large capsule is mechanistically equivalent to production of Escherichia coli group 1 and 4 capsules., UL https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/micro/10.1099/mic.0.025361-0