Comparison of lipopolysaccharides of Rhodomicrobium vannielii grown in photo- and chemotropic conditions.

Chemical composition of the lipopolysaccharides obtained from the strain Rhodomicrobium vannielii (ZoBell) grown in photo- and chemoheterotrophic conditions was compared. No significant differences in the constitution of both lipopolysaccharides were revealed, except for the presence of an additional 2-0-methyl-pentose and palmitic acid in the LPS isolated from the chemotrophically grown bacteria. The degraded polysaccharides from both lipopolysaccharide preparations, when fractionated in column chromatography, revealed the occurrence of two fractions only: the first one containing all the sugars present in the respective lipopolysaccharide and the second composed of KDO. Glucan was shown to be produced by the investigated strain in phototrophic conditions only.