A polymer of glucose and N-acetylgalactosamine 1-phosphate in the wall of Micrococcus sp. A1

Abstract

1. The walls of Micrococcus sp. A1contain about 43% of a phosphorylated polymer. It was extracted with cold trichloroacetic acid and purified by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose. 2. The polymer contained equimolar amounts of d-glucose, N-acetylgalactosamine and phosphate, and was readily hydrolysed under gentle acidic conditions to a phosphorylated disaccharide. 3. Chemical and enzymic degradation indicated that this was 3-O-alpha-d-glucopyranosyl-N-acetylgalactosamine with a phosphomonoester group at the 6-position on the glucose. 4. Related degradation of the polymer itself indicated that the repeating structure was the disaccharide with a phosphodiester residue joining the 1-position on galactosamine to the 6-position on glucose in a neighbouring unit. This polymer is thus another example of the increasing number of microbial wall polymers or teichoic acids possessing sugar 1-phosphate linkages.