Christi, Katrina, Elliman, Jennifer, and Owens, Leigh (2017) A synthesis of the divalent cation requirements for efficient adsorption of bacteriophage onto bacterial cells. In: Harrington, Daniel, (ed.) Bacteriophages: an overview and synthesis of a re-emerging field. Bacteriology Research Developments . Nova Science Publishers Inc, New York, NY, USA, pp. 43-69.

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Abstract

As the first step of bacteriophage infection, understanding the mechanics of adsorption of phages is vital for successful therapeutic phage treatments. It is also important for efficient scale-up of phages for industrial applications. It was understood early on that bacteriophage required divalent cations for successful adsorption. The mechanics of this process however are still vague; for some phage it may just be to negate negative electrostatic forces, for others it may also be specific for enzymatic and/or conformational changes. While many phages require divalent cations, the specificity of the ions and the concentrations differs between them. The adsorption efficiency of Ca2+ was superior in most studies to Mg2+ and other cations but the exact mechanisms are unresolved. The efficiency of Ca2+ might in general, explain why it is relatively easy to isolate phages from marine bacteria grown on marine salt based medium with high Ca2+/Mg2+ content. Too low a concentration of cations is insufficient for adsorption, and too high a concentration blocks adsorption. Of the monovalent cations, only H+ (pH) has been recorded to have a marked influence on adsorption. Phages become inactive and tend to aggregate at low pH and we hypothesise this is due to competitive exclusion interactions with Ca2+ or other bivalent cations. Whilst data are limited, the divalent cation optimum concentrations range between 0.01 and 10mM. Some phages like T4 phage may utilize organic substances such as L-tryptophan as a co-factor.

Item ID:	46917
Item Type:	Book Chapter (Scholarly Work)
ISBN:	978-1-63485-455-9
Keywords:	bacteriophage, divalent, cation, requirement
Related URLs:	Publisher
Date Deposited:	23 Feb 2017 22:09
FoR Codes:	06 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 0605 Microbiology > 060501 Bacteriology @ 50% 06 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 0605 Microbiology > 060506 Virology @ 50%
SEO Codes:	97 EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE > 970106 Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences @ 100%
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