The opportunistic human pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii persists in the healthcare setting because of its ability to survive exposure to various antimicrobial and sterilization agents. A. baumannii's ability to cause multiple infection types complicates diagnosis and treatment. Rapid detection of A. baumannii infections would likely improve treatment outcomes. Recently published Acinetobacter glycoproteomic data show the prevalence of O-linked glycoproteins, suggesting the possibility for an O-glycan-based detection technology. O-glycan biosynthesis is required for protein glycosylation and capsular polysaccharide production in A. baumannii. Recent publications demonstrate key roles for protein glycosylation and capsular polysaccharide in the pathogenicity of A. baumannii. Targeted antimicrobial development against O-glycan biosynthesis may produce new effective treatment options for A. baumannii infections. Here, we discuss how the data gathered through Acinetobacter glycoproteomics can be used to develop technologies for rapid diagnosis and reveal potential antimicrobial targets. In addition, we consider the efficacy of glycoconjugate vaccine development against A. baumannii.
Keywords: Acinetobacter baumannii; Acinetobacter diagnosis; O-linked glycosylation; ZIC-HILIC; clinical relevance; glycoproteomics; mass spectrometry; proteomics.