Comparative Properties of Bacteriophage φ6 and φ6 Nucleocapsid

Authors

James L. Van Etten, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Les Lane, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Carlos Gonzalez, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
James PartridgeFollow
Anne Vidaver, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

5-1-1976

Comments

Published in JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY, May 1976, p. 652-658, Vol. 18, No. 2. Copyright © 1976 American Society for Microbiology. Used by permission.

Abstract

Nonionic detergent treatments released a nucleocapsid from the enveloped bacteriophage φ6. The nucleocapsid sedimented at nearly the same rate as the whole phage in sucrose density gradients, but the buoyant density in Cs₂SO₄ changed from 1.22 g/cm³ for the whole phage to 1.33 g/cm³ for the nucleocapsid. The detergent completely removed the lipid and 5 of the 10 proteins from the phage. Surface labeling of the phage and nucleocapsid with ¹²⁵I revealed that protein P3 was on the outer surface of the whole phage and P8 was on the surface of the nucleocapsid. Both the phage and the nucleocapsid were stable between pH 6.0 and 9.5. Low concentrations of EDTA (10^-4 M) dissociated the nucleocapsid but had no effect on the whole phage. The nucleocapsid contained all three double-stranded RNA segments, as well as RNA polymerase activity.