Isolation and characterization of bacteriophages from clinical enterohemorrhagic <i>Escherichia coli</i> strains.

ABSTRACT: Temperate bacteriophages play a pivotal role in the biology of their bacterial host. Of particular interest are bacteriophages infecting enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) due to their significant contribution to the pathogenicity of its host, most notably by encoding the key virulence factor of this pathogen, the Shiga toxin. To better understand the role of EHEC phages on the functionality of its host, we isolated eight temperate phages from clinical EHEC isolates and characterized their genomic composition, morphology, and receptor targeting. Morphological analysis identified one long-tailed siphophage, targeting the OmpC receptor for host recognition, whereas the other seven phages are short-tailed podophages and target the essential BamA protein. Genomic characterization revealed

SUBMITTER: Vandierendonck J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12502783 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature