Functional Annotation of FD Cluster Phage Bouclier that Infects Arthrobacter globiformis.

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Structural Biology
• Virology

Background:

• Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria and play crucial roles in microbial ecosystems.
• Podoviruses are a morphological group of bacteriophages characterized by their short, non-contractile tails.
• Arthrobacter globiformis is a common soil bacterium relevant in various environmental processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the genome and structure of Phage Bouclier, a novel podovirus.
• To investigate the structural components of Phage Bouclier using computational modeling.
• To identify genes involved in host lysis within the Phage Bouclier genome.

Main Methods:

• Genome sequencing and analysis of Phage Bouclier.
• Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for visualizing phage morphology.
• Protein structure prediction using AlphaFold3 and structural comparison with known phages using ChimeraX.
• Identification and analysis of lysis cassette genes.

Main Results:

• Phage Bouclier possesses a 19,912 bp genome encoding 29 proteins, infecting Arthrobacter globiformis.
• TEM confirmed Bouclier as a podovirus, supported by gene identification for structural proteins.
• Macromolecular structures of portal, collar, tail knob, and capsid proteins were modeled, showing high similarity to Bacillus phage Φ29.
• A lysis cassette with two Lysin A genes and three putative transmembrane proteins was identified.

Conclusions:

• Phage Bouclier is a podovirus with a well-defined genome and structural features similar to other podoviruses.
• Computational modeling provides insights into the macromolecular structures of key phage components.
• The identified lysis cassette suggests mechanisms for host cell lysis by Phage Bouclier.