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An Optimized Enrichment Technique for the Isolation of Arthrobacter Bacteriophage Species from Soil Sample Isolates
Published on: April 9, 2015
Isolation independent methods of characterizing phage communities 1: strain typing using fingerprinting methods
Clemens Pausz1, Jessica L Clasen, Curtis A Suttle
1Department of Earth & Ocean Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)
|December 17, 2008
Summary
Quantifying natural viral communities requires isolation-independent methods. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) offer fast, cost-effective genetic fingerprinting for environmental virus diversity assessment.
Area of Science:
- Environmental microbiology
- Virology
- Molecular ecology
Background:
- Most phage genomes from natural samples are novel.
- Quantifying viral community diversity necessitates isolation-independent approaches.
- Genetic fingerprinting aids in understanding environmental virus populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and highlight the utility of two key methods for assessing natural phage community diversity.
- To emphasize the importance of isolation-independent techniques in virology.
Main Methods:
- Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE): Separates viral genomes based on size.
- Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE): Separates amplified DNA fragments based on base composition differences.
Main Results:
- PFGE and DGGE provide valuable genetic fingerprints of viral communities.
- These techniques are relatively fast and inexpensive for assessing viral diversity.
Conclusions:
- PFGE and DGGE are crucial tools for studying viral ecology in natural environments.
- Isolation-independent fingerprinting is essential for characterizing unknown viral sequences.
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