Dw. Hood et al., USE OF THE COMPLETE GENOME SEQUENCE INFORMATION OF HAEMOPHILUS-INFLUENZAE STRAIN RD TO INVESTIGATE LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE BIOSYNTHESIS, Molecular microbiology, 22(5), 1996, pp. 951-965
The availability of the complete 1.83-megabase-pair sequence of the Ha
emophilus influenzae strain Rd genome has facilitated significant prog
ress in investigating the biology of H. influenzae lipopolysaccharide
(LPS), a major virulence determinant of this human pathogen, By search
ing the H. influenzae genomic database, with sequences of known LPS bi
osynthetic genes from other organisms, we identified and then cloned 2
5 candidate LPS genes, Construction of mutant strains and characteriza
tion of the LPS by reactivity with monoclonal antibodies, PAGE fractio
nation patterns and electrospray mass spectrometry comparative analysi
s have confirmed a potential role in LPS biosynthesis for the majority
of these candidate genes. Virulence studies in the infant rat have al
lowed us to estimate the minimal LPS structure required for intravascu
lar dissemination, This study is one of the first to demonstrate the r
apidity, economy and completeness with which novel biological informat
ion can be accessed once the complete genome sequence of an organism i
s available.