The biosynthesis of nascent membrane lipoteichoic acid of Streptococcus faecium (S. faecalis ATCC 9790) from phosphatidylkojibiosyl diacylglycerol and phosphatidylglycerol.

Phosphatidylkojibiosyl diacylglycerol functions as the acceptor of sn-glycerol 1-phosphate moieties from phosphatidylglycerol in the in vitro synthesis of the membrane lipoteichoic acid of Streptococcus faecium (S. faecalis ATCC 9790). The enzyme catalyzing this polymer-forming reaction is membrane-bound. The majority of the product is water-soluble, is excluded from Sepharose 6B, and, after longer incubations, changes to a form that co-precipitates with protein upon exposure to a denaturing agent. These properties are shared by the polyglycerol phosphate-containing membrane lipoteichoic acid isolated from whole cells of S. faecium. However, unlike the lipoteichoic acid generated in vivo, the glycerol phosphate polymer portion of the product synthesized in vitro is not substituted and, therefore, is considered a nascent lipoteichoic acid intermediate.