Involvement of a Phage-Encoded Wzy Protein in the Polymerization of K127 Units To Form the Capsular Polysaccharide of Acinetobacter baumannii Isolate 36-1454
Nikolay P. Arbatsky, Anastasiya A. Kasimova, Alexander S. Shashkov, Mikhail M. Shneider, Anastasiya V. Popova, Dmitry A. Shagin, Andrey Shelenkov, Yulia V. Mikhailova, Yurii G. Yanushevich, Ruth M. Hall, Yuriy A. Knirel, Johanna J. Kenyon
Abstract
Bacteriophage therapy is an attractive innovative treatment for infections caused by extensively drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, for which there are few effective antibiotic treatments remaining. Capsular polysaccharide (CPS) is a primary receptor for many lytic bacteriophages, and thus knowledge of the chemical structures of CPS produced by the species will underpin the identification of suitable phages for therapeutic cocktails. However, recent research has shown that some isolates carry additional genes outside of the CPS biosynthesis K locus, which can modify the CPS structure. These changes can subsequently alter phage receptor sites and may be a method utilized for natural phage resistance. Hence, it is critical to understand the genetics that drive CPS synthesis and the extent to which genes outside of the K locus can affect the CPS structure.