Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ
Abstract As nucleus-forming phages become better characterized, understanding their unifying similarities and unique differences will help us understand how they occupy varied niches and infect diverse hosts. All identified nucleus-forming phages fall within the Chimalliviridae family and share a co...
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| Format: | Article |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-64095-4 |
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| author | Amy Prichard Annika Sy Justin Meyer Elizabeth Villa Joe Pogliano |
| author_facet | Amy Prichard Annika Sy Justin Meyer Elizabeth Villa Joe Pogliano |
| author_sort | Amy Prichard |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract As nucleus-forming phages become better characterized, understanding their unifying similarities and unique differences will help us understand how they occupy varied niches and infect diverse hosts. All identified nucleus-forming phages fall within the Chimalliviridae family and share a core genome of 68 unique genes including chimallin, the major nuclear shell protein. A well-studied but non-essential protein encoded by many nucleus-forming phages is PhuZ, a tubulin homolog which aids in capsid migration, nucleus rotation, and nucleus positioning. One clade that represents 24% of all currently known chimalliviruses lacks a PhuZ homolog. Here we show that Erwinia phage Asesino, one member of this PhuZ-less clade, shares a common overall replication mechanism with other characterized nucleus-forming phages despite lacking PhuZ. We show that Asesino replicates via a phage nucleus that encloses phage DNA and partitions proteins in the nuclear compartment and cytoplasm in a manner similar to previously characterized nucleus-forming phages. Consistent with a lack of PhuZ, however, we did not observe active positioning or rotation of the phage nucleus within infected cells. These data show that some nucleus-forming phages have evolved to replicate efficiently without PhuZ, providing an example of a unique variation in the nucleus-based replication pathway. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7bf8faea477d4b3ab86c4beaf078a8c0 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
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| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-7bf8faea477d4b3ab86c4beaf078a8c02025-01-12T12:24:05ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-01-0115111010.1038/s41598-024-64095-4Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZAmy Prichard0Annika Sy1Justin Meyer2Elizabeth Villa3Joe Pogliano4School of Biological Sciences, University of California San DiegoSchool of Biological Sciences, University of California San DiegoSchool of Biological Sciences, University of California San DiegoSchool of Biological Sciences, University of California San DiegoSchool of Biological Sciences, University of California San DiegoAbstract As nucleus-forming phages become better characterized, understanding their unifying similarities and unique differences will help us understand how they occupy varied niches and infect diverse hosts. All identified nucleus-forming phages fall within the Chimalliviridae family and share a core genome of 68 unique genes including chimallin, the major nuclear shell protein. A well-studied but non-essential protein encoded by many nucleus-forming phages is PhuZ, a tubulin homolog which aids in capsid migration, nucleus rotation, and nucleus positioning. One clade that represents 24% of all currently known chimalliviruses lacks a PhuZ homolog. Here we show that Erwinia phage Asesino, one member of this PhuZ-less clade, shares a common overall replication mechanism with other characterized nucleus-forming phages despite lacking PhuZ. We show that Asesino replicates via a phage nucleus that encloses phage DNA and partitions proteins in the nuclear compartment and cytoplasm in a manner similar to previously characterized nucleus-forming phages. Consistent with a lack of PhuZ, however, we did not observe active positioning or rotation of the phage nucleus within infected cells. These data show that some nucleus-forming phages have evolved to replicate efficiently without PhuZ, providing an example of a unique variation in the nucleus-based replication pathway.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-64095-4 |
| spellingShingle | Amy Prichard Annika Sy Justin Meyer Elizabeth Villa Joe Pogliano Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ Scientific Reports |
| title | Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ |
| title_full | Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ |
| title_fullStr | Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ |
| title_full_unstemmed | Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ |
| title_short | Erwinia phage Asesino is a nucleus-forming phage that lacks PhuZ |
| title_sort | erwinia phage asesino is a nucleus forming phage that lacks phuz |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-64095-4 |
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