Kuznetsov, A. S. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2026

Structural features of E. coli Stx bacteriophage phi24B revealed with cryo-electron microscopy

Shiga toxin-converting bacteriophages play a critical role in the emergence and virulence of pathogenic Escherichia coli strains. Despite their significance, detailed structural information on these phages remains scarce. Here we present a high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy and proteomic analysis of the phi24B bacteriophage, revealing an icosahedral capsid with T=9 symmetry, decorated by a processed esterase protein (gp84) and stabilized by cementing proteins. The tail assembly comprises a dodecameric portal, two rings of adapter proteins sharing a common fold, a hexameric nozzle, six lateral tail fibers, and a flexible central needle fiber. The binding sites of the fibers are described. Comparative analysis indicates conservation of the tail structure with related podoviruses but very different peripheral features.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2019

The lysogenization of the non-O157 Escherichia coli strains by stx-converting bacteriophage phi24B is associated with the O antigen loss and reduced fitness

The ability of the Shiga-toxigenic E. coli (STEC) to produce the toxin depends on the lysogenic conversion by stx-bacteriophages. The canonical stx-phage phi24B can lysogenize a wide variety of E. coli strains. In vivo the secondary lysogenization of symbiotic E. coli strains by the phages released by infecting STEC populations may contribute to the overall patient toxic load and to lead to the emergence of new pathogenic STEC strains. However, in our experiment all the phi24B lysogens obtained from the environmental E. coli isolates had compromised O-antigen (Oag) biosynthesis. These lysogenic strains gained the sensitivity to the T5-like bacteriophages and featured increased sensitivity to the bactericidal activity of the horse serum. We conclude that in most of E. coli strains the Oag effectively restricts phi24B infection. The lysogenic clones predominantly rise from the Oag deficient mutants and therefore they have reduced fitness compared to the parental strain.

microbiology↗