In future, we would like to experiment with the time of lysogeny of our phage. In particular, we would like to vary the environmental conditions (temperature, nutrition sources, and competing species) in order to determine the magnitude of effect that each of these on the time that our temperate phage remains dormant in the bacterial genome.
Fortunately, these unfinished experiments did not inhibit our ability to collect any of the data that is shown on the poster. Each experiment is almost completely independent of the others, so there were no concerns about future experimentation affecting the results that we had previously collected. However, these unfinished experiments did make it difficult to assign a cluster identification to our phage, or to describe some of its physical characteristics like tail sheath length, head shape, and so on.
Recent research has demonstrated that vestigial or active prophages are present in the genomes of particular strains of lethal bacteria. This linkage is believed to be caused by a mutualism between the prophage and its host, whereby the prophage will produce toxins and other critical metabolic enzymes that give the virulent bacteria a competitive advantage. Because MontyDog is a certain type of temperate phage, it is possible that further research into its Cluster ID and physical characteristics may further elucidate the mechanisms by which prophages contribute to bacterial survival and lethality.
In regards to your question about how to further classify MontyDog’s cluster, we would need to perform a PCR Cluster Experiment, in which we attempted to amplify the phage’s DNA with primers derived from a certain cluster. If the amplification was successful, we would be able to assert that our phage belonged to that particular grouping.
We chose MontyDog as a candidate through simple circumstance. In MCDB 1161, phages are derived from soil samples extracted by the students or TAs. Our temperate phage is the only species that we were able to successfully purify and concentrate.
Generally, larger plaques are indicative of a temperate morphology, which further supported our claim that MontyDog was a temperate phage. However, in the simplest sense, the size of a plaque represents the area of the bacterial lawn that was fully or partially lysed.
What experiments would you do for further research?
In future, we would like to experiment with the time of lysogeny of our phage. In particular, we would like to vary the environmental conditions (temperature, nutrition sources, and competing species) in order to determine the magnitude of effect that each of these on the time that our temperate phage remains dormant in the bacterial genome.
Since you didn’t have the time to do extra experiments like the PCR, did this effect your results or any methods used to obtain these results.
Fortunately, these unfinished experiments did not inhibit our ability to collect any of the data that is shown on the poster. Each experiment is almost completely independent of the others, so there were no concerns about future experimentation affecting the results that we had previously collected. However, these unfinished experiments did make it difficult to assign a cluster identification to our phage, or to describe some of its physical characteristics like tail sheath length, head shape, and so on.
how would you further classify MontyDog’s cluster, and what makes MontyDog important?
Recent research has demonstrated that vestigial or active prophages are present in the genomes of particular strains of lethal bacteria. This linkage is believed to be caused by a mutualism between the prophage and its host, whereby the prophage will produce toxins and other critical metabolic enzymes that give the virulent bacteria a competitive advantage. Because MontyDog is a certain type of temperate phage, it is possible that further research into its Cluster ID and physical characteristics may further elucidate the mechanisms by which prophages contribute to bacterial survival and lethality.
In regards to your question about how to further classify MontyDog’s cluster, we would need to perform a PCR Cluster Experiment, in which we attempted to amplify the phage’s DNA with primers derived from a certain cluster. If the amplification was successful, we would be able to assert that our phage belonged to that particular grouping.
What previous studies or journals led you to pick MontyDog for your research? Also, what does the size of your phage mean or represent?
We chose MontyDog as a candidate through simple circumstance. In MCDB 1161, phages are derived from soil samples extracted by the students or TAs. Our temperate phage is the only species that we were able to successfully purify and concentrate.
Generally, larger plaques are indicative of a temperate morphology, which further supported our claim that MontyDog was a temperate phage. However, in the simplest sense, the size of a plaque represents the area of the bacterial lawn that was fully or partially lysed.