Bacteriophage functions

When a virus multiplies, the genome becomes released from the coat. This process occurs during the infection process. The present chapter is divided into three parts. The first part deals with basic concepts of virus structure and function. The second part deals with the nature and manner of multiplication of the bacterial viruses (bacteriophages). In this part we introduce the basic molecular biology of virus multiplication. The third part deals with important groups of animal viruses, with emphasis on molecular aspects of animal virus multiplication. 

We have already seen the diversity of function in the lyases, hydrolases and oxidoreductases. Several other types of zinc coordination are found in a number of other enzymes, illustrated in Figure 12.8. These include enzymes with the coordination motif [(His)2(Cys) Zn2+-OH2], illustrated by the lysozyme of bacteriophage T7 this group also includes a peptidyl deformylase. 

To circumvent some of the limitations of direct immunization, phage display technology has been applied to the preparation of fully human MABs. Gene libraries of cDNA from nonimmune or immunized donor lymphocytes are expressed in bacteriophages. The bacteriophages display functional antibody fragments and can... 

Some E. coli bacteriophages, including f2, MS2, R17, and Qj8, as well as some eukaryotic viruses (including influenza and Sindbis viruses, the latter associated with a form of encephalitis) have RNA genomes. The single-stranded RNA chromosomes of these viruses, which also function as mRNAs for the synthesis of viral proteins, are replicated in the host cell by an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RNA replicase). All RNA viruses—with the exception of retroviruses—must encode a protein with RNA-dependent RNA polymerase activity because the host cells do not possess this enzyme. 

Figure 7-29 Assembly sequence for bacteriophage T4 with details for the tail. The numbers refer to the genes in the T4 chromosome map (Fig. 26-2). A "P" after the number indicates that the protein gene product is incorporated into the phage tail. Other numbers indicate gene products that are thought to have essential catalytic functions in the assembly process. Adapted from King and Mykolajewycz236 and Kikuchi and King.214...

In addition to its function in catalysis, zinc often plays an important structural role, e.g., in the zinc finger transcriptional regulators (Fig. 5-38).k Zinc ions bind to insulin and stabilize its hexameric structure (Fig. 7-18)/ Six Zn2+ ions are present in the hexagonal tail plate of the T-even bacteriophage (Box 7-C) and appear to be essential for invasion of bacteria.131 In carnivores, the tapetum, the reflecting layer behind the retina of the eye of many animals, contains crystals of the Zn2+-cysteine complex. 

The bacteriophage T4 gene 41 protein, a 5 —>3 helicase, functions together with the gene 61 primase in replication of that virus.326 326b The phage T7 gene 4... 

But real systems are usually not simple feedback loops. In a virus such as bacteriophage the decision to kill the infected bacterial cell or to establish a symbiotic association with it depends on complex interactions involving a number of interconnected feedback loops. Such systems (and even simpler ones) would need a formal description in view of their complexity but as a matter of fact this complexity is such that the classical methods are much too heavy. This was a reason for trying a logical description, that is, a description using variables and functions which can take only a limited number of values—typically two (1 and 0). 

Hershey, A. D., and M. Chase, Independent functions of viral proteins and nucleic acid in growth of bacteriophage. 

The RNA genomes of single-stranded RNA bacterial viruses, such as Q/3, MS2, R17, and f2, are themselves mRNAs. Bacteriophage Q/3 codes for a polypeptide that combines with three host proteins to form an RNA-depen-dent RNA polymerase (replicase). The three host proteins are ribosomal protein SI and two elongation factors for protein synthesis EF-Tu and EF-Ts (see table 28.5). The Q/3 replicase functions exclusively with the Q/3 RNA plus strand template. It first makes a complementary RNA transcript (minus strand) and ultimately uses the minus strand as... 

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