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Characterization of Extended-Host-Range Pseudo-T-Even Bacteriophage Kpp95 Isolated on Klebsiella pneumoniae

Lii-Tzu Wu,¹ Shu-Ying Chang,¹ Ming-Ren Yen,^2, Tsuey-Ching Yang,³ and Yi-Hsiung Tseng^4*

Department of Microbiology, Institute of Medical Science, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan, Republic of China,¹ Institute of Molecular Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan, Republic of China,² Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan, Republic of China,³ Institute of Medical Biotechnology, Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taichung 406, Taiwan, Republic of China⁴

Received 7 September 2006/ Accepted 12 February 2007

Kpp95, isolated on Klebsiella pneumoniae, is a bacteriophage with the morphology of T4-type phages and is capable of rapid lysis of host cells. Its double-stranded genomic DNA (ca. 175 kb, estimated by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis) can be cut only by restriction endonucleases with a cleavage site flanked either by A and T or by T, as tested, suggesting that it contains the modified derivative(s) of G and/or C. Over 26 protein bands were visualized upon sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the virion proteins. N-terminal sequencing indicated that the most abundant band (46 kDa) is the major coat protein (gp23) which has been cleaved from a signal peptide likely with a length similar to that of T4. Phylogenetic analyses based on the sequences of the central region (263 amino acid residues) of gp23 and the full length of gp18 and gp19 placed Kpp95 among the pseudo-T-even subgroup, most closely related to the coliphage JS98. In addition to being able to lyse many extended-spectrum ß-lactamase strains of K. pneumoniae, Kpp95 can lyse Klebsiella oxytoca, Enterobacter agglomerans, and Serratia marcescens cells. Thus, Kpp95 deserves further studies for development as a component of a therapeutic cocktail, owing to its high efficiencies of host lysis plus extended host range.

Published ahead of print on 2 March 2007.

Present address: Division of Biology, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0116.