This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Rettenmier, C. W. Articles by Hemphill, H. E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Rettenmier, C. W. Articles by Hemphill, H. E.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

J Virol. 1974 April; 13(4): 870-880
Copyright © 1974 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Abortive Infection of Lysogenic Bacillus subtilis 168(SPO2) by Bacteriophage 1

¹ Department of Biology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13210

ABSTRACT

Virulent bacteriophage 1 was not able to productively infect strains of Bacillus subtilis which were lysogenic for the temperate bacteriophage SPO2, although it adsorbed to, penetrated, and killed these bacteria. Studies of phage and host nucleic acid production in the nonpermissive host demonstrated that normal 1 transcription was initiated early in the latent period, but this was followed by a general failure of host and phage nucleic acid synthesis about 10 to 15 min after infection. Mixed infections of 1 and SPO2c₁, a clear-plaque mutant of SPO2, indicated that a similar inhibition of 1 development occurred when this phage infected nonlysogenic B. subtilis cells committed to the SPO2c₁ lytic cycle. It is proposed that the SPO2- and SPO2c₁-mediated interference did not act directly on the 1 genome, but rather these phages altered the host physiology in such a manner that some normal step in 1 development triggered a collapse of vital metabolic activities.