Quantitation, chemical characteristics, and ultrastructure of the three outer cell wall layers of a gram-negative bacterium.

The cell wall of the gram-negative marine pseudomonad (American Type Culture Collection 19855) consists of three layers: the loosely bound outer layer, the outer double-track layer, and the underlying layer. These three layers constitute 4.7, 7.9, and 6.1%, respectively, of the dry weight of the whole cells. All three layers contained protein, lipid, and carbohydrate. The loosely bound outer layer and underlying layer were lower in protein and lipid and higher in amino and nonamino carbohydrate than the outer double-track layer. All three layers contained proteins with similar amino acid compositions. Minicell-like forms attached to the ends of cells were separated with and fractionated from the units of loosely bound outer layer. Examination of negatively stained preparations by electron microscopy revealed the loosely bound outer layer to be composed largely of units ranging from 400 to 1000 nm in diameter. The outer double-track layer, by the same technique, appeared as large, usually rounded sheets, each with a distinct rim. Washing this layer changed the gross chemical composition but did not affect the bimolecular leaflet appearance in thin sections. The underlying layer, when negatively stained, appeared to be composed of a heterogeneous mixture of particles differing in size and shape. It was separated by gel filtration into a large fraction with a molecular weight range in excess of 20 x 10(6) to 40 x 10(6) and a small fraction with a lower range of molecular weight. The larger fraction contained both protein and hexosamine, whereas the smaller one contained protein and only traces of hexosamine. A cytochrome-like pigment separated with this latter fraction.