Mycobacteriophages: Windows into Tuberculosis

Mycobacteriophages: Windows into Tuberculosis

Mycobacteriophages are viruses that infect mycobacterial hosts, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium smegmatis [1]. Because the discovery and genomic characterization of mycobacteriophages has been the focus of integrated research and education programs, including the Phage Hunters Integrating Research and Education (PHIRE) and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Educati...

Comparative genomics of the mycobacteriophages: insights into bacteriophage evolution.

The recognition of the vast numbers of bacteriophages in the biosphere has prompted a renewal of interest in understanding their morphological and genetic diversity, and elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms that give rise to them. We have approached these questions by isolating and characterizing a collection of mycobacteriophages that infect a common bacterial host, Mycobacterium smegmatis....

Windows into non-Euclidean spaces

Lytic Efficiency of Mycobacteriophages

Mycobacteriophages D29 and TM4 are the two virulent phages widely used for the study of mycobacterial genetics. Both the phages are capable of killing Mycobacterium tuberculosis but the efficiency of these phages in killing has not been evaluated and compared. There are reports based on codon usage analysis where TM4 is predicted to be a better killing phage over D29 which corroborated with the...

Mycobacteriophages: genes and genomes.

Viruses are powerful tools for investigating and manipulating their hosts, but the enormous size and amazing genetic diversity of the bacteriophage population have emerged as something of a surprise. In light of the evident importance of mycobacteria to human health--especially Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which causes tuberculosis--and the difficulties that have plagued their genetic manipulati...