The Pseudomonas aeruginosa algC gene product participates in rhamnolipid biosynthesis

Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces exoproducts correlated with its pathogenici ty. One of these virulence-associated traits is the surfactant rhamnolipid. The production of alginate and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) are also of import ance for P. aeruginosa virulence. The product of the algC gene (which is in volved in alginate production through its phosphomannomutase activity and i n LPS synthesis through its phosphoglucomutase activity) participates in rh amnolipid production, presumably catalyzing the first step in the deoxy-thy midine-diphospho-L-rhamnose (dTDP-L-rhamnose) pathway, the conversion of gl ucose-6-phosphate to glucose-1-phosphate. Other structural alg genes, encod ed in the alg operon, are not involved in rhamnolipid nor LPS production. T hese results show that the AlgC protein plays a central role in the product ion of the three P. aeruginosa virulence-associated saccharides: alginate, LPS and rhamnolipid. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.