Hybrid Vigor: Importance of Hybrid λ Phages in Early Insights in Molecular Biology.

Laboratory-generated hybrids between phage λ and related phages played a seminal role in establishment of the λ model system, which, in turn, served to develop many of the foundational concepts of molecular biology, including gene structure and control. Important λ hybrids with phages 21 and 434 were the earliest of such phages. To understand the biology of these hybrids in full detail, we determined the complete genome sequences of phages 21 and 434. Although both genomes are canonical members of the λ-like phage family, they both carry unsuspected bacterial virulence gene types not previously described in this group of phages. In addition, we determined the sequences of the hybrid phages λ imm21, λ imm434, and λ h434 imm21. These sequences show that the replacements of λ DNA by nonhomologous segments of 21 or 434 DNA occurred through homologous recombination in adjacent sequences that are nearly identical in the parental phages. These five genome sequences correct a number of errors in published sequence fragments of the 21 and 434 genomes, and they point out nine nucleotide differences from Sanger's original λ sequence that are likely present in most extant λ strains in laboratory use today. We discuss the historical importance of these hybrid phages in the development of fundamental tenets of molecular biology and in some of the earliest gene cloning vectors. The 434 and 21 genomes reinforce the conclusion that the genomes of essentially all natural λ-like phages are mosaics of sequence modules from a pool of exchangeable segments.

Complete Genome Sequence of Alcaligenes faecalis Phage Piluca.

Alcaligenes faecalis is an opportunistic pathogen exhibiting drug resistance. Here, the 35,451-bp genome of A. faecalis phage Piluca is described. Piluca is not closely related to any isolated phages in the NCBI database. Piluca possesses genes encoding CI-like and Cro-like repressors and a tyrosine integrase, suggesting its temperate lifestyle.

Complete Genome Sequence of Achromobacter xylosoxidans Myophage Mano.

Achromobacter spp. are ubiquitous Gram-negative bacteria, some of which can cause respiratory tract infections in patients with autoimmune disorders and cystic fibrosis. Bacteriophages have therapeutic and biotechnological potential to combat Achromobacter sp. infections. This announcement details the 42.5-kb genome sequence of the temperate Achromobacter xylosoxidans myophage Mano.

Complete Genome Sequence of Rhizobium phaseoli Podophage Palo.

Here, we present the genome of Palo, a T7-like podophage of Rhizobium phaseoli The genome is 46.3 kb and contains 58 predicted protein-coding genes, including a novel signal-anchor-release (SAR) endolysin, a homolog of the T5 A1 protein required for DNA transfer, and a dual-start holin/antiholin pair.

Complete Genome Sequence of Klebsiella pneumoniae Myophage Muenster.

Klebsiella pneumoniae is associated with antibiotic-resistant nosocomial infections. Here, we present the annotated genome sequence of the Klebsiella jumbo phage Muenster. The Muenster genome sequence (346,937 bp) encodes 6 tRNAs and 561 putative protein-coding genes, including 9 tail fibers, suggesting a genetic mechanism to broaden the host range.

The Structural Basis of T4 Phage Lysis Control: DNA as the Signal for Lysis Inhibition.

Optimal phage propagation depends on the regulation of the lysis of the infected host cell. In T4 phage infection, lysis occurs when the holin protein (T) forms lesions in the host membrane. However, the lethal function of T can be blocked by an antiholin (RI) during lysis inhibition (LIN). LIN sets if the infected cell undergoes superinfection, then the lysis is delayed until host/phage ratio becomes more favorable for the release of progeny. It has been thought that a signal derived from the superinfection is required to activate RI. Here we report structures that suggest a radically different model in which RI binds to T irrespective of superinfection, causing it to accumulate in a membrane as heterotetrameric 2RI-2T complex. Moreover, we show the complex binds non-specifically to DNA, suggesting that the gDNA from the superinfecting phage serves as the LIN signal and that stabilization of the complex by DNA binding is what defines LIN. Finally, we show that soluble domain of free RI crystallizes in a domain-swapped homotetramer, which likely works as a sink for RI molecules released from the RI-T complex to ensure efficient lysis. These results constitute the first structural basis and a new model not only for the historic LIN phenomenon but also for the temporal regulation of phage lysis in general.

Complete Genome Sequence of Staphylococcus aureus Siphophage Lorac.

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of a wide range of clinical infections. Here, we announce the complete genome sequence of S. aureus siphophage Lorac, a phiETA-like temperate phage that is similar at the nucleotide level to the previously described S. aureus prophage phiNM2.

Complete Genome Sequences of Staphylococcus epidermidis Myophages Quidividi, Terranova, and Twillingate.

Staphylococcus epidermidis is an opportunistic pathogen that commonly colonizes human skin and mucous membranes. We report here the complete genome sequences of three S. epidermidis phages, Quidividi, Terranova, and Twillingate, which are members of the Twort-like group of large myophages infecting Gram-positive hosts.

Fluorescent nanodiamond-bacteriophage conjugates maintain host specificity.

Rapid identification of specific bacterial strains within clinical, environmental, and food samples can facilitate the prevention and treatment of disease. Fluorescent nanodiamonds (FNDs) are being developed as biomarkers in biology and medicine, due to their excellent imaging properties, ability to accept surface modifications, and lack of toxicity. Bacteriophages, the viruses of bacteria, can have exquisite specificity for certain hosts. We propose to exploit the properties of FNDs and phages to develop phages conjugated with FNDs as long-lived fluorescent diagnostic reagents. In this study, we develop a simple procedure to create such fluorescent probes by functionalizing the FNDs and phages with streptavidin and biotin, respectively. We find that the FND-phage conjugates retain the favorable characteristics of the individual components and can discern their proper host within a mixture. This technology may be further explored using different phage/bacteria systems, different FND color centers and alternate chemical labeling schemes for additional means of bacterial identification and new single-cell/virus studies.

Characterization of a Novel Tectivirus Phage Toil and Its Potential as an Agent for Biolipid Extraction.

The oleaginous bacterium Rhodococcus opacus PD630 is metabolically diverse and can be cultivated on various renewable resources to serve as a sustainable triacylglycerol (TAG) feedstock for biodiesel production. Current methods for TAG extraction are costly, but infection of cultures by lytic bacteriophages (phages) may be a viable approach for achieving release of intracellular lipid from oleaginous bacteria such as R. opacus. This study reports the novel tectiviral phage Toil capable of releasing intracellular contents including a fluorescent protein marker and TAGs into the supernatant after phage infection of R. opacus PD631, a domesticated derivative of strain PD630. Phage Toil is placed in the Tectiviridae by its morphology, the presence of a lipid membrane, its genome architecture and the presence of terminal covalently-linked proteins. Toil is the first tectivirus capable of infecting a member of the Actinobacteria. Microscopy shows that infected cells do not undergo sudden lysis but instead maintain their original shape for several hours, with the cellular morphology gradually deteriorating. Approximately 30% of intracellular TAGs could be recovered from the culture supernatants of Toil-infected PD631 cells. Phage Toil has potential to be used as an agent in extraction of TAGs from oleaginous bacterium R. opacus. IMPORTANCE: This study reported the first tectivirus (Phage Toil) capable of infecting a member of the Actinobacteria. In this study, we showed that Phage Toil can infect oleaginous bacterium Rhodococcus opacus to release intracellular contents such as a fluorescent protein marker and TAG lipid granules, which can serve as a starting material for biodiesel production. This study demonstrates a new method to extract TAGs by using this phage. Additionally, Phage Toil can be a new model phage to advance knowledge regarding phage infection mechanisms in Rhodococcus and other mycolic acid-containing bacteria such as Mycobacterium.

Genomic and proteomic features of mycobacteriophage SWU1 isolated from China soil.

Mycobacteriophage SWU1 is a newly isolated phage from soil sample collected in Sichuan province, China using Mycobacterium smegmatis mc(2)155 as host. Plaque, phage morphology and one-step growth curve were characterized. The complete genomic sequence of phage SWU1 was determined by shotgun sequencing. The ends of SWU1 were determined. Structural proteins of SWU1 were analyzed by NanoLC-ESI-MS/MS. Seven ORFs were identified as structural protein encoded by SWU1 genome. The genetic basis underlying the SWU1 plaque was explored using comparative genomics. Prophages homologous to SWU1 were identified in two pathogens, Segniliparus rugosus ATCC BAA-974 and Mycobacterium rhodesiae JS60. Genus Segniliparus is a member of the order Corynebacteriales. To our knowledge, this is the first report of Mycobacterium prophages in different genera.

Cultivation of lipid-producing bacteria with lignocellulosic biomass: effects of inhibitory compounds of lignocellulosic hydrolysates.

Lignocellulosic biomass has been recognized as a promising feedstock for the fermentative production of biofuel. However, the pretreatment of lignocellulose generates a number of by-products, such as furfural, 5-hydroxylmethyl furfural (5-HMF), vanillin, vanillic acids and trans-p-coumaric acid (TPCA), which are known to inhibit microbial growth. This research explores the ability of Rhodococcus opacus PD630 to use lignocellulosic biomass for production of triacylglycerols (TAGs), a common lipid raw material for biodiesel production. This study reports that R. opacus PD630 can grow well in R2A broth in the presence of these model inhibitory compounds while accumulating TAGs. Furthermore, strain PD630 can use TPCA, vanillic acid, and vanillin as carbon sources, but can only use TPCA and vanillic acid for TAG accumulation. Strain PD630 can also grow rapidly on the hydrolysates of corn stover, sorghum, and grass to accumulate TAGs, suggesting that strain PD630 is well-suited for bacterial lipid production from lignocellulosic biomass.

Phage lysis: three steps, three choices, one outcome.

The lysis of bacterial hosts by double-strand DNA bacteriophages, once thought to reflect merely the accumulation of sufficient lysozyme activity during the infection cycle, has been revealed to recently been revealed to be a carefully regulated and temporally scheduled process. For phages of Gramnegative hosts, there are three steps, corresponding to subversion of each of the three layers of the cell envelope: inner membrane, peptidoglycan, and outer membrane. The pathway is controlled at the level of the cytoplasmic membrane. In canonical lysis, a phage encoded protein, the holin, accumulates harmlessly in the cytoplasmic membrane until triggering at an allele-specific time to form micron-scale holes. This allows the soluble endolysin to escape from the cytoplasm to degrade the peptidoglycan. Recently a parallel pathway has been elucidated in which a different type of holin, the pinholin, which, instead of triggering to form large holes, triggers to form small, heptameric channels that serve to depolarize the membrane. Pinholins are associated with SAR endolysins, which accumulate in the periplasm as inactive, membrane-tethered enzymes. Pinholin triggering collapses the proton motive force, allowing the SAR endolysins to refold to an active form and attack the peptidoglycan. Surprisingly, a third step, the disruption of the outer membrane is also required. This is usually achieved by a spanin complex, consisting of a small outer membrane lipoprotein and an integral cytoplasmic membrane protein, designated as o-spanin and i-spanin, respectively. Without spanin function, lysis is blocked and progeny virions are trapped in dead spherical cells, suggesting that the outer membrane has considerable tensile strength. In addition to two-component spanins, there are some single-component spanins, or u-spanins, that have an N-terminal outer-membrane lipoprotein signal and a C-terminal transmembrane domain. A possible mechanism for spanin function to disrupt the outer membrane is to catalyze fusion of the inner and outer membranes.

Efficacy of bacteriophage therapy in a model of Burkholderia cenocepacia pulmonary infection.

The therapeutic potential of bacteriophages (phages) in a mouse model of acute Burkholderia cenocepacia pulmonary infection was assessed. Phage treatment was administered by either intranasal inhalation or intraperitoneal injection. Bacterial density, macrophage inflammatory protein 2 (MIP-2), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) levels were significantly reduced in lungs of mice treated with intraperitoneal phages (P < .05). No significant differences in lung bacterial density or MIP-2 levels were found between untreated mice and mice treated with intranasal phages, intraperitoneal ultraviolet-inactivated phages, or intraperitoneal lambda phage control mice. Mock-infected mice treated with phage showed no significant increase in lung MIP-2 or TNF-alpha levels compared with mock-infected/mock-treated mice. We have demonstrated the efficacy of phage therapy in an acute B. cenocepacia lung infection model. Systemic phage administration was more effective than inhalational administration, suggesting that circulating phages have better access to bacteria in lungs than do topical phages.

The final step in the phage infection cycle: the Rz and Rz1 lysis proteins link the inner and outer membranes.

Bacteriophage lambda has four adjacent genes -S, R, Rz and Rz1- dedicated to host cell lysis. While S, encoding the holin and antiholin, and R, encoding the endolysin, have been intensively studied, the products of Rz and Rz1 have not been characterized at either the structural or functional levels. Rz1 is an outer membrane lipoprotein and our results indicate that Rz is a type II signal anchor protein. Here we present evidence that an Rz-Rz1 complex that spans the periplasm carries out the final step in the process of host lysis. These results are discussed in terms of a model where endolysin-mediated degradation of the cell wall is a prerequisite for conformational changes in the Rz-Rz1 complex leading to the juxtaposition and fusion of the IM and OM. Fusion of the two membranes removes the last physical barrier to efficient release of progeny virions.