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Journal of Glycobiology | ISSN: 2168-958X | Volume 7
Glycobiology & Glycoproteomics
5
th
International Conference on
&
August 27-28, 2018 | Toronto, Canada
Molecular Biology & Nucleic Acids
3
rd
International Conference on
Molecular evolutionary relationships between O antigens of enteric bacteria
Yuriy A Knirel
N. D. Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry, Russia
Statement of the Problem:
Enteric bacteria
Escherichia coli
is the predominant facultative anaerobe of the colonic flora, and some
specific serotypes are associated with enteritis, hemorrhagic colitis, and hemolytic uremic syndrome
. Shigella
spp. are human
pathogens that cause diarrhea and bacillary dysentery (shigellosis). Strains of
Salmonella enterica
are responsible for a food-borne
infection (salmonellosis), and specific serotypes cause typhoid fever and paratyphoid fever. Salmonella and
Escherichia
diverged
about 140 million years ago
. Shigella
spp. evolved 150 to 300 years ago and are in effect
E. coli
with a specific mode of pathogenicity.
All these bacteria are closely related with respect to structure and genetics of the lipopolysaccharide, including the O-polysaccharide
part (O antigen). Being exposed to the bacterial cell surface, the O-antigen is subject to intense selection by the host immune system
and bacteriophages giving rise to diverse O antigen forms and providing the basis for typing of bacteria. The O-antigen forms of many
bacteria are unique, but some are structurally and genetically related to others.
Methodology &Theoretical Orientation:
The sequenced O-antigen gene clusters between conserved galF and genes were analyzed
taking into account the O-antigen structures established by us and others for all
S. enterica
and
Shigella
and most
E. coli
O-serogroups.
Multiple genetic mechanisms of diversification of the O-antigen forms, such as lateral gene transfer and mutations, were elucidated
and are summarized in the present paper. They include acquisition or inactivation of genes for sugar synthesis or transfer or
recombination of O-antigen gene clusters or their parts.
Conclusion & Significance:
The data obtained contribute to our understanding of the origins of the O-antigen diversity, shed light
on molecular evolutionary relationships between the O-antigens of enteric bacteria, and open a way for studies of the role of gene
polymorphism in pathogenicity.
yknirel@gmail.comJ Glycobiol 2018, Volume 7
DOI: 10.4172/2168-958X-C1-012