Electrophoretic Analysis of Bacterial Cell Wall Peptidoglycan

肽聚糖是一种坚硬的网状结构，形成细菌的外壁。这种分子塑造了细菌的形状，并保护它们免受外力的破坏。这个封闭细菌细胞的“笼子”是由青霉素结合蛋白这一酶家族构成的。我们对这些酶本身的结构和活性了解很多，但对这些蛋白质如何影响细菌的生长或行为知之甚少。研究肽聚糖生物学功能的主要问题之一是目前的分析技术复杂且耗时。为了解决这个问题，正在采用一种电泳法来分析肽聚糖的化学成分。这项技术被称为荧光团辅助碳水化合物电泳(Face)，比目前可用的技术更容易、更快、更灵敏。该项目的长期目标是解释肽聚糖的结构、合成和重塑，并使用这些信息来解释细菌新陈代谢和生理的重要方面。该项目的具体目标是发展一种简单、快速的分析技术，以扩大对肽聚糖结构及其生物学功能的理解。Face的简单和快速应该能够调查细菌世界的肽聚糖组成，并导致对肽聚糖结构如何有助于细菌生理的新的见解。

Peptidoglycan is a rigid net-like structure that forms the outer wall of bacteria. This molecule gives bacteria their shape and protects them from destruction from outside forces. This "cage" that encloses bacterial cells is constructed by a family of enzymes, the penicillin binding proteins. We know a great deal about the structure and activities of these enzymes themselves, but little is known about how these proteins affect bacterial growth or behavior. One of the major problems in studying the biological functions of peptidoglycan is that current analytical techniques are complex and time-consuming. To address this problem, an electrophoresis procedure is being adapted to analyze the chemical composition of peptidoglycan. This technique, called fluorophore-assisted carbohydrate electrophoresis (FACE), is easier, faster, and more sensitive than currently available techniques. The long term goal of this project is to explain the structure, synthesis, and remodeling of peptidoglycan and to use this information to explain important aspects of bacterial metabolism and physiology. The specific objective of this project is to develop to maturity a simplified, rapid analytical technique that will expand the understanding of peptidoglycan structure and its biological functions. The simplicity and speed of FACE should make it possible to survey the peptidoglycan composition of the bacterial world and lead to new insights about how peptidoglycan structure contributes to bacterial physiology.