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. 1983 Oct;156(1):130–135. doi: 10.1128/jb.156.1.130-135.1983

Absence of oligomeric murein intermediates in Escherichia coli.

E W Goodell, Z Markiewicz, U Schwarz
PMCID: PMC215060  PMID: 6352672

Abstract

The intermediates in the biosynthetic pathway of murein were examined in two strains of Escherichia coli to determine whether they synthesized oligomeric precursors in vivo. No oligomeric precursors could be detected; the only intermediates found were the previously described UDP-N-acetylmuramyl peptides, and the two lipid-linked compounds, N-acetylglucosamyl-N-acetylmuramyl-(pentapeptide)-pyrophosphoryl-undecaprenol and N-acetylmuramyl-(pentapeptide)-pyrophosphoryl-undecaprenol. It was concluded that lipid-linked monomers are directly incorporated into the murein sacculus in vivo and do not pass through an oligomeric stage.

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Selected References

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