Nutrient niche specificity for glycosaminoglycans is reflected in polysaccharide utilization locus architecture of gut Bacteroides species
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Updated: Aug 17, 2025

Generation of Null Mutants to Elucidate the Role of Bacterial Glycosyltransferases in Bacterial Motility
Published on: March 11, 2022
Annelieke Overbeeke1,2, Bela Hausmann3,4, Georgi Nikolov1
1Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Introduction:
Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) present in the mucosal layer can be used as nutrients by certain intestinal bacteria, particularly members of the Bacteroides. GAG abundances are altered in some diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases, which may affect microbial composition and activity, and it is therefore important to understand GAG utilization by members of the gut microbiota.
Methods:
We used growth assays, transcriptomics, and comparative genomics to evaluate chondroitin sulfate (CS) and hyaluronan (HA) degradation ability by multiple gut Bacteroides species.
Results And Discussion:
We found that not all Bacteroides species able to degrade CS could also degrade HA, despite having lyases which act on both compounds. We propose that in the model organism Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, the lyase BT_3328 in combination with surface binding proteins BT_3329 and BT_3330 and potentially BT_4411 are involved in HA breakdown. Furthermore, degradation of both compounds provides public goods for other Bacteroides, including non-degraders, suggesting that cooperative degradation as well as cross-feeding may be widespread in the mucosal glycan utilization clade.
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