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Intracellular development of choleraphage phi 149 under permissive and nonpermissive conditions: an electron

S Majumdar1, S N Dey, R Chowdhury

  • 1Biophysics Division, Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Calcutta.

Intervirology
|January 1, 1988
PubMed

Insights

Researchers studied choleraphage phi 149 infecting Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio eltor cells. They observed host DNA degradation, phage particle formation, and a specific DNA intermediate, which was absent in high-phosphate conditions.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Choleraphage phi 149 is a bacteriophage that infects Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio eltor.
  • Understanding phage-host interactions is crucial for controlling bacterial infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the intracellular development of choleraphage phi 149 in Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio eltor.
  • To examine the role of host DNA and DNA intermediates during phage replication under varying conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Thin-section electron microscopy was used to visualize intracellular phage development.
  • Analysis of DNA replication intermediates during phage infection.

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated degradation of host Vibrio DNA post-infection.
  • Observed the formation of mature phage phi 149 particles within infected cells.
  • Resolved the concatemeric DNA intermediate during replication in permissive hosts.
  • Confirmed the absence of this concatemeric DNA intermediate in high-phosphate medium.

Conclusions:

  • Choleraphage phi 149 undergoes complete intracellular development, including host DNA degradation and progeny phage formation.
  • The presence of a concatemeric DNA intermediate is host-dependent and influenced by medium composition (e.g., phosphate levels).

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