TY - JOUR
T1 - Mycobacteriophage 15 infection of Mycobacterium bovis BCG
T2 - Implications for phage genetics in the slow-growing mycobacteria
AU - Fullner, Karla Jean
AU - Hatfull, Graham F.
PY - 1997
Y1 - 1997
N2 - Mycobacteriophage L5 is a well-characterized temperate phage that forms stable lysogens in Mycobacterium smegmatis. The host range of L5 is, however, unclear because previous reports suggested that it does not infect stow-growing mycobacteria such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG). Moreover, luciferase reporter phage derivatives of L5 failed to produce light from BCG, suggesting that infection is blocked at or before the stage of DNA injection. In this study, we demonstrate that L5 infection of slow growing mycobacteria specifically requires a high concentration of Ca2+, conditions that differs from those required for infection of M. smegmatis by L5 and for infection of BCG by the closely related phage D29. In addition, we show that there are specific genetic determinants of L5 that confer the ability to infect slow growing mycobacteria, without altering infection of M. smegmatis. These observations extend the use of phage L5 for the diagnosis and analysis of tuberculosis and other mycobacterial diseases.
AB - Mycobacteriophage L5 is a well-characterized temperate phage that forms stable lysogens in Mycobacterium smegmatis. The host range of L5 is, however, unclear because previous reports suggested that it does not infect stow-growing mycobacteria such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG). Moreover, luciferase reporter phage derivatives of L5 failed to produce light from BCG, suggesting that infection is blocked at or before the stage of DNA injection. In this study, we demonstrate that L5 infection of slow growing mycobacteria specifically requires a high concentration of Ca2+, conditions that differs from those required for infection of M. smegmatis by L5 and for infection of BCG by the closely related phage D29. In addition, we show that there are specific genetic determinants of L5 that confer the ability to infect slow growing mycobacteria, without altering infection of M. smegmatis. These observations extend the use of phage L5 for the diagnosis and analysis of tuberculosis and other mycobacterial diseases.
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U2 - 10.1046/j.1365-2958.1997.6111984.x
DO - 10.1046/j.1365-2958.1997.6111984.x
M3 - Article
C2 - 9427405
AN - SCOPUS:0030608682
VL - 26
SP - 755
EP - 766
JO - Molecular Microbiology
JF - Molecular Microbiology
SN - 0950-382X
IS - 4
ER -