title: Characterization of the cro-ori region of the Streptococcus thermophilus virulent bacteriophage DT1.
abstract: The virulent cos-type Streptococcus thermophilus phage DT1 was previously isolated from a mozzarella whey sample, and its complete genomic sequence is available. The putative ori of phage DT1 is characterized by three inverted and two direct repeats located in a noncoding region between orf36 and orf37. As the replication ability of the putative ori and flanking genes could not be established, its ability to confer phage resistance was tested. When ori is cloned on a high-copy-number plasmid, it provides protection to S. thermophilus strains against phage infection during milk fermentation. This protection is phage specific and strain dependent. Then, a detailed transcriptional map was established for the region located between the cro-like gene (orf29) and the ori. The results of the Northern blots indicated that the transcription of this region started 5 min after the onset of phage infection. Comparative analysis of the expression of the cro-ori region in the three S. thermophilus cos-type phages DT1, Sfi19 (virulent), and Sfi21 (temperate) reveals significant differences in the number and size of transcripts. The promoter upstream of orf29 was further investigated by primer extension analysis, and its activity was confirmed by a chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assay, which showed that the phage promoter is more efficient than the constitutive bacterial promoter of the S. thermophilus operon encoding the general proteins of the phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system. However, the phage promoter is less efficient than the pts promoter in Lactococcus lactis and in Escherichia coli.
authors.affiliation: Groupe de Recherche en Ecologie Buccale, Faculté de Médecine Dentaire, Université Laval, Québec, Canada G1K 7P4.
authors.forename: Geneviève
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lamothe
authors.forename: Céline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lévesque
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bissonnette
authors.forename: Armelle
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cochu
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vadeboncoeur
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Frenette
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Duplessis
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tremblay
authors.forename: Sylvain
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moineau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002611:Cheese / Q000382:microbiology; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D005285:Fermentation; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005814:Genes, Viral; D016679:Genome, Viral; D008892:Milk / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D018741:Replication Origin; D013045:Species Specificity; D017108:Streptococcus Phages / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D048249:Streptococcus thermophilus / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000821:virology*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral