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Descriptions are generated automatically from the ICTVdB database including links. Some descriptions are only very basic and links may point to documents that are not yet published on the Web.

02.043. Myoviridae

Cite this publication as: ICTVdB Management (2006). 02.043. Myoviridae. In: ICTVdB - The Universal Virus Database, version 4. Büchen-Osmond, C. (Ed), Columbia University, New York, USA

Cite this site as: ICTVdB - The Universal Virus Database, version 4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ICTVdb/ICTVdB/

Table of Contents

Classification

This is a description of a bacterial virus at the family level.

ICTVdB Virus Code: 02.043. Virus accession number: 02043FAM. Obsolete virus code: 43.; superceded accession number: 43000000.
NCBI Taxon Identifier NCBI Taxonomy ID: 10662.

Name, Synonyms and Lineage

Synonym(s): Phages with contractile tails. Virus is of the order 02. Caudovirales.

Virion Properties

Morphology

Phages consist of a head and a tail and are not enveloped. Head separated from tail by a neck, tail complex, consisting of a central tube and a contractile sheath, provided with a collar, base plate, 6 short spikes and 6 long fibbers. Contraction seems to require ATP. Phage has a a tail with helical and a head with icosahedral symmetry or symmetry which is derived from a basic icosahedral structure by adding rows of capsomers to the capsid (T=13). The head is isometric to prolate in shape and has a diameter of 50-110 nm. Capsids appear hexagonal in outline. The capsid consists of 152 capsomers. The tail is a rigid, long and thick, contractile tube which is cross-banded, or is obliquely striated with a crisscrossed appearance with a length of (80-)95-111(-455) nm and a width of 16-20 nm. Axial canal is distinct. Basic helix is obvious. Tail has a collar, a base plate, spikes, fibers, and a sheath, which is separated from the head by a neck; sheath is composed of stacked rings. During contraction, sheath subunits of contractile tails slide over each other and the sheath becomes shorter and thicker, sheath is 10-15 nm long when contracted. Tail has 6 long terminal fibers, 6 short spikes and a small base plate. The central core of phage tail helical.

Electron micrograph of Myoviridae by Dr Maria Schnos, Department of Molecular Virology, Bock Laboratories, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, USA.

Physicochemical and Physical Properties

Virions have a buoyant density in CsCl of 1.41-1.51 g cm^-3.

Nucleic Acid

The Mr of the genome constitutes 48% of the virion by weight. The genome is not segmented and contains a single molecule of linear double-stranded DNA. The complete genome is 33600-170000 nucleotides long. Genome is sequenced, but only an estimate is available, complete sequence is 33600-170000 nucleotides long. The genome has a guanine + cytosine content of 35 %. The genome contains unusual bases, they are 5-hydroxy-methyl cytosine (instead of thymidine). Double stranded DNA is circularly permuted. The genome has terminally redundant sequences.

GenBank records for nucleotide sequences; complete genome sequences.

Proteins

The viral genome encodes structural proteins and non-structural proteins.

Lipids

Lipids are not reported.

Biological Properties

Natural Host

Domain
Viral hosts belong to the Domain Bacteria.

Domain Bacteria
Phylum Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Cyanobacteria.

Taxonomic Structure of the Family

02.043.0.01. "T4-like viruses"
02.043.0.02. "P1-like viruses"
02.043.0.03. "P2-like viruses"
02.043.0.04. Mu-like viruses
02.043.0.05. "SP01-like Phages
02.043.0.06. "φH-like viruses".

Unassigned Viruses

List of Unassigned Viruses in the Family.

Data Sources and Contributions

The description has been compiled from data in the ICTV Report presented by Ackermann H-W, Dubow MS.

References

The following generic references are cited in the most recent ICTV Report.

PubMed References.

Images

Taxon images: • EM by Hans Ackermann, Laval University, Quebec.

The description has been generated automatically from DELTA files.

ICTVdB - The Universal Virus Database, developed for the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) by Dr Cornelia Büchen-Osmond, is written in DELTA. The virus descriptions in ICTVdB are coded by ICTV members and experts, or by the ICTVdB Management using data provided by the experts, the literature or the latest ICTV Report. The character list is the underlying code. All virus descriptions are based on the character list and natural language translations from the encoded descriptions are automatically generated and formatted for display on the Web.

Developer of the DELTA software: M. J. Dallwitz, T. Paine and E. Zurcher

ICTVdB and DELTA related References

Comments to ICTVdB Management
Last updated on 25 April 2006 by Cornelia Büchen-Osmond
Copyright © 2002 International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. All rights reserved.

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