Recognition and Degradation of Plant Cell Wall Polysaccharides by Two Human Gut Symbionts

Symbiotic bacteria inhabiting the human gut have evolved under intense pressure to utilize complex carbohydrates, primarily plant cell wall glycans in our diets. These polysaccharides are not digested by human enzymes, but are processed to absorbable short chain fatty acids by gut bacteria. The Bacteroidetes, one of two dominant bacterial phyla in the adult gut, possess broad glycan-degrading abilities. These species use a series of membrane protein complexes, termed Sus-like systems, for catabolism of many complex carbohydrates. However, the role of these systems in degrading the chemically diverse repertoire of plant cell wall glycans remains unknown. Here we show that two closely related human gut…

• NI
  National Institutes of Health

  Awards: HG00045, GM07200
• DF
  Directorate for Biological Sciences
• BA
  Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

  Award: BB/F014163/1