A general protein O-glycosylation machinery conserved in Burkholderia species improves bacterial fitness and elicits glycan immunogenicity in humans

The Burkholderia genus encompasses many Gram-negative bacteria living in the rhizosphere. Some Burkholderia species can cause life-threatening human infections, highlighting the need for clinical interventions targeting specific Burkholderia proteins. Burkholderia cenocepacia O-linked protein glycosylation has been reported, but the chemical structure of the O-glycan and the machinery required for its biosynthesis are unknown and could reveal potential therapeutic targets. Here, using bioinformatics approaches, gene-knockout mutants, purified recombinant proteins, LC-MS–based analyses of O-glycans, and NMR-based structural analyses, we identified a B. cenocepacia O-glycosylation (ogc) gene cluster in necessary for synthesis, assembly, and membrane translocation of a lipid-linked O-glycan, as well as its structure, which consists of a β-Gal-(1,3)-α-GalNAc-(1,3)-β-GalNAc trisaccharide. We demonstrate that the ogc cluster is conserved in the Burkholderia genus and confirm the production of glycoproteins with similar glycans in the Burkholderia species B. thailandensis, B. gladioli, and B. pseudomallei. Further, we show that absence of protein O-glycosylation severely affects bacterial fitness and accelerates bacterial clearance in a Galleria mellonella larva infection model. Finally, our experiments revealed that patients infected with B. cenocepacia, B. multivorans, B. pseudomallei, or B. mallei develop O-glycan–specific antibodies. Together, these results highlight the importance of general protein O-glycosylation in the biology of the Burkholderia genus and its potential as a target for inhibition or immunotherapy approaches to control Burkholderia infections.