Isolation and characterization of a mannan from mesosomal membrane vesicles of Micrococcus lysodeikticus

The carbohydrate content of mesosomal membranes of Micrococcus lysodeikticus has been shown to be consistently higher (about four times) than that of corresponding plasma membrane preparations. Analysis of washed membrane fractions by gas-liquid chromatography indicated that mannose was the major neutral sugar of both types of membrane (accounting for 95 and 89%, respectively, of the mesosomal and plasma membrane carbohydrate). Small amounts of inositol, glucose and ribose were also detected. We have shown by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecylsulphate and by precipitation and agar gel diffusion experiments with concanavalin A that a mannan is the major carbohydrate component of both types of membrane. This polymer can be selectively released from mesosomal membranes by a simple procedure involving low ionic strength-shock and heating to 80 degrees C for 1 min, and purified by ultrafiltration and ethanol precipitation. The mannan contains mannose as the only neutral carbohydrate, is not phosphorylated and does not contain significant amounts of amino sugars or uronic acids. Agar gel electrophoresis experiments, however, indicate an anionic polymer whose acidic properties are eliminated upon mild base hydrolysis. Analysis of native mannan by infrared spectroscopy reveals absorption bands attributable to ester carbonyl groups and to carboxylate ions, consistent with the presence of succinyl residues in the polymer (Owen, P. and Salton, M.R.J. (1975) Biochem, Biophys. Res. Commun. 63, 875--800). A sedimentation coefficient of 1.39 S was obtained by analytical ultracentrifugation in 1.0 M NaCl and a value of one reducing equivalent per 50 mannose residues by reduction with NaB3H4. The polysaccharide was only slightly degraded (2%) by jack bean alpha-mannosidase and could precipitate 15 times its own weight of concanavalin A. The acidic polymers was also detected in the cell "periplasm" and was secreted from cells grown in defined media during the period of decelerating growth.