title: An insight into staphylococcal pathogenicity island-mediated interference with phage late gene transcription.
abstract: Staphylococcal pathogenicity islands (SaPIs) are ∼15 kb chromosomally located mobile elements that parasitize "helper" phages which provide a de-repressor protein plus virion and lysis proteins which enable the release of infectious SaPI particles in very high titers. All SaPIs interfere with the reproduction of their helper phages, using 3 different mechanisms. The logic of SaPI reproduction requires that these interference mechanisms do not totally block phage production, as this would be lethal for them as well as for the phage. The discovery of 2 SaPI2 proteins that totally block phage 80 by interfering with late phage transcription was inconsistent with this principle and led to the discovery of a third protein that binds to one of the interference proteins and modulates its activity, thus preventing complete inhibition of the phage. These systems permit the SaPIs to engage in horizontal transfer of unlinked chromosomal genes as well as their own.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Microbiology and Medicine; New York University School of Medicine and Program in Molecular Pathogenesis; Skirball Institute ; New York, NY USA.
authors.forename: Geeta
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ram
authors.affiliation: Departments of Microbiology and Medicine; New York University School of Medicine and Program in Molecular Pathogenesis; Skirball Institute ; New York, NY USA.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Departments of Microbiology and Medicine; New York University School of Medicine and Program in Molecular Pathogenesis; Skirball Institute ; New York, NY USA.
authors.forename: Hope F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.affiliation: Departments of Microbiology and Medicine; New York University School of Medicine and Program in Molecular Pathogenesis; Skirball Institute ; New York, NY USA.
authors.forename: Richard P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Novick
keywords: pathogenicity island; phage DNA packaging; phage interference; staphylococcus; terminase; transcription inhibition; transduction