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Appl. Environ. Microbiol., Aug 1997, 3246-3253, Vol 63, No. 8
C Le Marrec, D van Sinderen, L Walsh, E Stanley, E Vlegels, S Moineau, P Heinze, G Fitzgerald and B Fayard
A comparative study of 30 phages of Streptococcus thermophilus was
performed based on DNA restriction profiles, DNA homology, structural
proteins, packaging mechanisms, and host range data. All phages exhibited
distinct DNA restriction profiles, with some phages displaying similarly
sized restriction fragments. DNA homology was shown to be present among all
30 phages. The phages could be divided into two groups on the basis of
their packaging mechanism as was derived from the appearance of submolar
DNA fragments in restriction enzyme digests and the presence
(cos-containing phages) or absence (pac- containing phages) of cohesive
genomic extremities. Interestingly, the 19 identified cos-containing phages
possessed two major structural proteins (32 and 26 kDa) in contrast to the
remaining 11 pac-containing phages, which possessed three major structural
proteins (41, 25, and 13 kDa). Southern hybridization demonstrated that all
pac-containing phages tested contain homologs of the genes encoding the
three major structural proteins of the pac-containing phage O1205, whereas
all cos- containing phages tested exhibit homology to the gene specifying
one of the structural components of the cos-containing phage phi 7201.
Fifty- seven percent of the phages (both cos and pac containing) possessed
the previously identified 2.2-kb EcoRI fragment of the temperate S.
thermophilus phage Sfi18 (H. Brussow, A. Probst, M. Fremont, and J. Sidoti,
Virology 200:854-857, 1994). No obvious correlation was detected between
grouping based on packaging mechanism and host range data obtained with 39
industrial S. thermophilus strains.
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology
Two groups of bacteriophages infecting Streptococcus thermophilus can be distinguished on the basis of mode of packaging and genetic determinants for major structural proteins
Microbiology Department, University College Cork, Ireland.
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