Genomic sequence of mycobacteriophage WXIN
The vast majority of mycobacteriophages have been isolated using the model species Mycobacterium smegmatis, implying the untapped potential for exploring novel mycobacteriophages in nature. In this study, a novel mycobacteriophage WXIN was isolated from soil samples in Wuhan, China, using M. septicum as alternative host. The limited genome-wide similarity, along with phylogenetic trees constructed based on viral proteome and core genes show that phage WXIN represents a novel phage distantly related to cluster J mycobacteriophages (genus Omegavirus). These results provide novel insights into the biological and genomic properties of mycobacteriophages, highlighting the great genetic diversity of mycobacteriophages in regard to their hosts.