This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Liu, B. L.
Right arrow Articles by Clarke, I. N.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Liu, B. L.
Right arrow Articles by Clarke, I. N.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Virology, April 2000, p. 3464-3469, Vol. 74, No. 8
0022-538X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Molecular Characterization of a Bacteriophage (Chp2) from Chlamydia psittaci

B. L. Liu,1 J. S. Everson,1 B. Fane,2 P. Giannikopoulou,3 E. Vretou,3 P. R. Lambden,1 and I. N. Clarke1,*

Department of Molecular Microbiology, University Medical School, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD, United Kingdom1; Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721-00902; and Biotechnology, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, 115 21 Athens, Greece3

Received 25 October 1999/Accepted 3 January 2000

Comparisons of the proteome of abortifacient Chlamydia psittaci isolates from sheep by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis identified a novel abundant protein with a molecular mass of 61.4 kDa and an isoelectric point of 6.41. C-terminal sequence analysis of this protein yielded a short peptide sequence that had an identical match to the viral coat protein (VP1) of the avian chlamydiaphage Chp1. Electron microscope studies revealed the presence of a 25-nm-diameter bacteriophage (Chp2) with no apparent spike structures. Thin sections of chlamydia-infected cells showed that Chp2 particles were located to membranous structures surrounding reticulate bodies (RBs), suggesting that Chp2 is cytopathic for ovine C. psittaci RBs. Chp2 double-stranded circular replicative-form DNA was purified and used as a template for DNA sequence analysis. The Chp2 genome is 4,567 bp and encodes up to eight open reading frames (ORFs); it is similar in overall organization to the Chp1 genome. Seven of the ORFs (1 to 5, 7, and 8) have sequence homologies with Chp1. However, ORF 6 has a different spatial location and no cognate partner within the Chp1 genome. Chlamydiaphages have three viral structural proteins, VP1, VP2, and VP3, encoded by ORFs 1 to 3, respectively. Amino acid residues in the phi X174 procapsid known to mediate interactions between the viral coat protein and internal scaffolding proteins are conserved in the Chp2 VP1 and VP3 proteins. We suggest that VP3 performs a scaffolding-like function but has evolved into a structural protein.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Mailpoint 814, South Block, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD, United Kingdom. Phone: 44 2380 796975. Fax: 44 2380 796995. E-mail: inc{at}soton.ac.uk.

Journal of Virology, April 2000, p. 3464-3469, Vol. 74, No. 8
0022-538X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Skilton, R. J., Cutcliffe, L. T., Pickett, M. A., Lambden, P. R., Fane, B. A., Clarke, I. N. (2007). Intracellular Parasitism of Chlamydiae: Specific Infectivity of Chlamydiaphage Chp2 in Chlamydophila abortus. J. Bacteriol. 189: 4957-4959 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lambden, P. R., Pickett, M. A., Clarke, I. N. (2006). The effect of penicillin on Chlamydia trachomatis DNA replication.. Microbiology 152: 2573-2578 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Rokyta, D. R., Burch, C. L., Caudle, S. B., Wichman, H. A. (2006). Horizontal Gene Transfer and the Evolution of Microvirid Coliphage Genomes. J. Bacteriol. 188: 1134-1142 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Clarke, I. N., Cutcliffe, L. T., Everson, J. S., Garner, S. A., Lambden, P. R., Pead, P. J., Pickett, M. A., Brentlinger, K. L., Fane, B. A. (2004). Chlamydiaphage Chp2, a Skeleton in the {phi}X174 Closet: Scaffolding Protein and Procapsid Identification. J. Bacteriol. 186: 7571-7574 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Everson, J. S., Garner, S. A., Lambden, P. R., Fane, B. A, Clarke, I. N. (2003). Host Range of Chlamydiaphages {phi}CPAR39 and Chp3. J. Bacteriol. 185: 6490-6492 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Read, T. D., Myers, G. S. A., Brunham, R. C., Nelson, W. C., Paulsen, I. T., Heidelberg, J., Holtzapple, E., Khouri, H., Federova, N. B., Carty, H. A., Umayam, L. A., Haft, D. H., Peterson, J., Beanan, M. J., White, O., Salzberg, S. L., Hsia, R. -c., McClarty, G., Rank, R. G., Bavoil, P. M., Fraser, C. M. (2003). Genome sequence of Chlamydophila caviae (Chlamydia psittaci GPIC): examining the role of niche-specific genes in the evolution of the Chlamydiaceae. Nucleic Acids Res 31: 2134-2147 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Karunakaran, K. P., Blanchard, J. F., Raudonikiene, A., Shen, C., Murdin, A. D., Brunham, R. C. (2002). Molecular Detection and Seroepidemiology of the Chlamydia pneumoniae Bacteriophage ({Phi}Cpn1). J. Clin. Microbiol. 40: 4010-4014 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Everson, J. S., Garner, S. A., Fane, B., Liu, B.-L., Lambden, P. R., Clarke, I. N. (2002). Biological Properties and Cell Tropism of Chp2, a Bacteriophage of the Obligate Intracellular Bacterium Chlamydophila abortus. J. Bacteriol. 184: 2748-2754 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Brentlinger, K. L., Hafenstein, S., Novak, C. R., Fane, B. A., Borgon, R., McKenna, R., Agbandje-McKenna, M. (2002). Microviridae, a Family Divided: Isolation, Characterization, and Genome Sequence of {phi}MH2K, a Bacteriophage of the Obligate Intracellular Parasitic Bacterium Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus. J. Bacteriol. 184: 1089-1094 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lenart, J., Andersen, A. A., Rockey, D. D. (2001). Growth and Development of Tetracycline-Resistant Chlamydia suis. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 45: 2198-2203 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Bavoil, P. M., Hsia, R.-c., Ojcius, D. M. (2000). Closing in on Chlamydia and its intracellular bag of tricks. Microbiology 146: 2723-2731 [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»