The structure of a novel polysaccharide isolated from Zymomonas mobilis determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

A novel polysaccharide has been observed in vivo by 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy of the gram-negative bacterium, Zymomonas mobilis. The polysaccharide, which was not removed from the Z. mobilis cell by washing with 0.86% saline, was extracted by mild acid treatment. The structure was elucidated by a combination of NMR techniques, including proton and proton-carbon two-dimensional methods. The structure was determined to be -alpha-fructofuranosyl-(2-1)-beta-fructofuranosyl-(2-6)-. The polysaccharide is unlike levan, a beta-(2-6)-fructose polymer which is produced by many bacteria, including Z.mobilis, when grown on sucrose. The polysaccharide isolated here is produced by cells cultured on glucose, fructose or sucrose.