The sialic acids are a family of 9-carbon sugar acids found predominantly on the cell-surface glycans of humans and other animals within the Deuterostomes and are also used in the biology of a wide range of bacteria that often live in association with these animals. For many bacteria sialic acids are simply a convenient source of food, whereas for some pathogens they are also used in immune evasion strategies. Many bacteria that use sialic acids derive them from the environment and so are dependent on sialic acid uptake. In this mini-review I will describe the discovery and characterization of bacterial sialic acids transporters, revealing that they have evolved multiple times across multiple diverse families of transporters, including the ATP-binding cassette (ABC), tripartite ATP-independent periplasmic (TRAP), major facilitator superfamily (MFS) and sodium solute symporter (SSS) transporter families. In addition there is evidence for protein-mediated transport of sialic acids across the outer membrane of Gram negative bacteria, which can be coupled to periplasmic processing of different sialic acids to the most common form, β-D-N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) that is most frequently taken up into the cell.
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June 2016
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Cover Image
Cover Image
Shining a spotlight on outer membrane protein folding. Outer membrane proteins (OMPs) [such as OmpA (green, top left)] have to navigate their way from the ribosome (bottom of image) via trigger factor (red) and SecB (turquoise), through the SecYEG translocon (red/yellow) in the inner membrane (IM). They are then chaperoned across the periplasm until they can insert and fold into their ultimate destination, the outer membrane. For further details see pp. 802–809. The figure was produced by Jim Horne. - PDF Icon PDF LinkTable of Contents
Review Article|
June 09 2016
Sialic acid acquisition in bacteria–one substrate, many transporters
Gavin H. Thomas
Gavin H. Thomas
1
*Department of Biology, Area (10), University of York, Wentworth Way, York Y010 5YW, U.K.
1email gavin.thomas@york.ac.uk
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
February 04 2016
Online ISSN: 1470-8752
Print ISSN: 0300-5127
© 2016 The Author(s). published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society
2016
Biochem Soc Trans (2016) 44 (3): 760–765.
Article history
Received:
February 04 2016
Citation
Gavin H. Thomas; Sialic acid acquisition in bacteria–one substrate, many transporters. Biochem Soc Trans 15 June 2016; 44 (3): 760–765. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BST20160056
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