The Life of Fede: Discovery and Analysis of a Novel Microbacterium foliorum Bacteriophage
Submission Type
Event
Faculty Advisor
Richard Alvey
Expected Graduation Date
2023
Start Date
4-4-2020 9:00 AM
End Date
4-4-2020 10:00 AM
Disciplines
Biology | Education
Abstract
Bacteriophages are the most abundant biological entities on Earth, yet they remain greatly understudied and mysterious to the scientific world. These viruses insert their own DNA into bacteria and use the host to reproduce. This parasitic behavior allows them to pass on toxin genes and express them in the host genome, which has been found to increase the virulence of diseases that can be harmful and deadly to humans. The aim of this research was to discover and characterize a bacteriophage that had never been studied before. A soil sample was collected from Melrose Park, IL and a single phage, named Fede, was isolated and studied using Microbacterium foliorum as the host. It is a podoviridae, the rarest morphology among M. foliorum hosts, meaning that it has a very short, non-contractile tail. Based on genomic analysis, Fede was placed into the EK cluster and EK2 subcluster. Only 8.1% of all M. foliorum bacteriophages belong to this group. Akoni, another phage in this subcluster from Tampa, FL, was found to have the most similar genome as Fede, with 89.0% similarity. This research has contributed to the understanding of bacteriophages and their role on Earth.
The Life of Fede: Discovery and Analysis of a Novel Microbacterium foliorum Bacteriophage
Bacteriophages are the most abundant biological entities on Earth, yet they remain greatly understudied and mysterious to the scientific world. These viruses insert their own DNA into bacteria and use the host to reproduce. This parasitic behavior allows them to pass on toxin genes and express them in the host genome, which has been found to increase the virulence of diseases that can be harmful and deadly to humans. The aim of this research was to discover and characterize a bacteriophage that had never been studied before. A soil sample was collected from Melrose Park, IL and a single phage, named Fede, was isolated and studied using Microbacterium foliorum as the host. It is a podoviridae, the rarest morphology among M. foliorum hosts, meaning that it has a very short, non-contractile tail. Based on genomic analysis, Fede was placed into the EK cluster and EK2 subcluster. Only 8.1% of all M. foliorum bacteriophages belong to this group. Akoni, another phage in this subcluster from Tampa, FL, was found to have the most similar genome as Fede, with 89.0% similarity. This research has contributed to the understanding of bacteriophages and their role on Earth.
Comments
Bacteriophages are the most abundant biological entities on Earth, yet they remain greatly understudied and mysterious to the scientific world. These viruses insert their own DNA into bacteria and use the host to reproduce. This parasitic behavior allows them to pass on toxin genes and express them in the host genome, which has been found to increase the virulence of diseases that can be harmful and deadly to humans. The aim of this research was to discover and characterize a bacteriophage that had never been studied before. A soil sample was collected from Melrose Park, IL and a single phage, named Fede, was isolated and studied using Microbacterium foliorum as the host. It is a podoviridae, the rarest morphology among M. foliorum hosts, meaning that it has a very short, non-contractile tail. Based on genomic analysis, Fede was placed into the EK cluster and EK2 subcluster. Only 8.1% of all M. foliorum bacteriophages belong to this group. Akoni, another phage in this subcluster from Tampa, FL, was found to have the most similar genome as Fede, with 89.0% similarity. This research has contributed to the understanding of bacteriophages and their role on Earth.