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Infection and Immunity, April 2008, p. 1628-1638, Vol. 76, No. 4
0019-9567/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.01393-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Vibrio vulnificus Biotype 2 Serovar E gne but Not galE Is Essential for Lipopolysaccharide Biosynthesis and Virulence{triangledown}

Esmeralda Valiente,1 Natalia Jiménez,2 Susana Merino,2 Juan M. Tomás,2 and Carmen Amaro1*

Universidad de Valencia Departamento de Microbiología y Ecología, c/ Dr. Moliner, 50, Burjasot, Valencia,1 Universidad de Barcelona Departamento de Microbiología, Diagonal 645, 08071 Barcelona, Spain2

Received 17 October 2007/ Returned for modification 10 December 2007/ Accepted 21 January 2008

This work aimed to establish the role of gne (encoding UDP-GalNAc 4-epimerase activity) and galE (encoding UDP-Gal-4-epimerase activity) in the biosynthesis of surface polysaccharides, as well as in the virulence for eels and humans of the zoonotic serovar of Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2, serovar E. DNA sequence data revealed that gne and galE are quite homologous within this species (≥90% homology). Mutation in gne of strain CECT4999 increased the surface hydrophobicity, produced deep alterations in the outer membrane architecture, and resulted in noticeable increases in the sensitivity to microcidal peptides (MP), to eel and human sera, and to phagocytosis/opsonophagocytosis. Furthermore, significant attenuation of virulence for eels and mice was observed. By contrast, mutation in galE did not alter the cellular surface, did not increase the sensitivity to MP, serum, or phagocytosis, and did not affect the virulence for fish and mice. The change in the attenuated-virulence phenotype produced by a mutation in gne was correlated with the loss of the O-antigen lipopolysaccharide (LPS), while the capsule was maintained. Complementation of a gne-deficient mutant restored the LPS structure together with the whole virulence phenotype. In conclusion, gne, but not galE, is essential for LPS biosynthesis and virulence in the zoonotic serovar of V. vulnificus biotype 2.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Departamento de Microbiología y Ecología, Universidad de Valencia, c/ Dr. Moliner, 50, Burjasot, Valencia, Spain. Phone: 34 96 354 31 04. Fax: 34 96 354 45 70. E-mail: carmen.amaro{at}uv.es

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 28 January 2008.

Editor: B. A. McCormick

Infection and Immunity, April 2008, p. 1628-1638, Vol. 76, No. 4
0019-9567/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.01393-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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