The ea22 gene of lambdoid phages:  preserved prolysogenic function despite of high sequence diversity

In this study, we provided evidence thatea22, the largest gene of this region, favors the lysogenic pathway over the lytic pathway in contrast to other characterizedexo-xis region genes includingea8.5,orf61, orf60a, andorf63. Our assays also suggest some functional analogies between Ea22 and the phage integrase protein (Int). While it is unsurprising that Ea22 operates similarly in both λ and Stx phages, we have observed some distinctions that may arise from considerable sequence dissimilarity at the carboxy termini of each protein.

Source: Virus Genes - January 21, 2020 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Source Type: research