Some developmental features of Escherichia coli Mu phage in Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells
Kaplan, A.M.; Akhverdian, V.Z.; Krylov, V.N.
Genetika 29(7): 1080-1087
1993
ISSN/ISBN: 0016-6758 PMID: 8370507 Document Number: 413314
In order to determine the replication-transposition (RT) efficiency of Escherichia coli phage Mu in Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells, the change of Mu DNA copy number after transfer of P. aeruginosa (RP4::Mu) from 42 (the condition of RP4::Mu plasmid stability and low phage production level in P. aeruginosa) to 30 degrees C (the condition of RP4::Mu plasmid instability and higher phage production level in P. aeruginosa) was analysed. It was shown that the temperature shift causes no increase in Mu DNA copy number, although free phage DNA is revealed after transfer of the cells at 30 degrees C. Considering that the studied cells contained also a linear RP4 DNA and the free Mu DNA hybridized with the RP4 DNA, we proposed that the mature Mu DNA arises as a result of Mu genome packaging from the original plasmid. So, the Mu genome RT is uneffective in P. aeruginosa and all of the phage particles released from P. aeruginosa (RP4::Mu) cells contain Mu DNA apparently originated from the DNA of hybrid plasmid RP4::Mu. Moreover, these results suggest that the Mu DNA packaging is not effective in P. aeruginosa (taking into account that the P. aeruginosa (RP4::Mu) cells release about 10(-2) p.f.u./cell and that originally the copy number of RP4::Mu > or = 1).