Chemical and antigenic structure of the O‐polysaccharide of the lipopolysaccharides from two Acinetobacter haemolyticus strains differing only in the anomeric configuration of one glycosyl residue in their O‐antigens

In a previous study [Pantophlet, R., Brade, L., Dijkshoorn, L., and Brade, H. (1998) J. Clin. Microbiol.36, 1245–1250] the O‐polysaccharide of the lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from Acinetobacter haemolyticus strains 57 and 61 exhibited indistinguishable banding‐patterns following Western blot and immunostaining with homologous or heterologous rabbit antiserum. In this report, the molecular basis for the observed cross‐reactivity was elucidated, by determining the chemical structure of the polysaccharides by compositional analysis and NMR spectroscopy. The structures are: for strain 57, and for strain 61 [GulpNAcA, 2‐acetamido‐2‐deoxy‐gulopyranosyluronic acid; ManpNAcA, 2‐acetamido‐2‐deoxy‐mannopyranosyluronic acid; QuipN4N, 2,4‐diamino‐2,4,6‐trideoxy‐glucopyranose; acyl (S)‐3‐hydroxybutyryl], thus, differing only in the anomeric configuration of the QuipN4N residue. The antigenic structures were determined by generating murine monoclonal antibodies, which were characterized by Western blot using LPS as antigen, by ELISA using LPS and de‐O‐acylated LPS as solid‐phase antigens, and by ELISA inhibition studies using LPS, polysaccharide, and de‐O‐acylated LPS as inhibitors. Of the four antibodies selected, two were specific for the respective LPS moieties and two were cross‐reactive. All antibodies were found to require the presence of the O‐acetyl group for reactivity.