Open AccessIsolation and characterization of bacteriophages infecting Salmonella spp.
Author(s) -
CareySmith Gwyneth V.,
Billington Craig,
Cornelius Angela J.,
Hudson J. Andrew,
Heinemann Jack A.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2006.00217.x
Subject(s) - salmonella , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , serotype , salmonella enteritidis , isolation (microbiology) , phage typing , population , host (biology) , agar , multiplicity of infection , bacteria , virology , virus , genetics , demography , sociology
Bacteriophages infecting Salmonella spp. were isolated from sewage using soft agar overlays containing three Salmonella serovars and assessed with regard to their potential to control food‐borne salmonellae. Two distinct phages, as defined by plaque morphology, structure and host range, were obtained from a single sample of screened sewage. Phage FGCSSa1 had the broadest host range infecting six of eight Salmonella isolates and neither of two Escherichia coli isolates. Under optimal growth conditions for S . Enteritidis PT160, phage infection resulted in a burst size of 139 PFU but was apparently inactive at a temperature typical of stored foods (5°C), even at multiplicity of infection values in excess of 10 000. While neither isolate had characteristics that would make them candidates for biocontrol of Salmonella spp. in foods, phage FGCSSa1 behaved unusually when grown on two Salmonella serotypes at 37°C in that the addition of phages appeared to retard growth of the host, presumably by the lysis of a fraction of the host cell population.