Mutations in the temperate phage P22 and lysogeny in Salmonella

Abstract

All the clear-plaque forming mutants of phage P22 can be classified into three groups; c 1, c 2, and c 3. The corresponding mutations occur at three adjacent loci within a small region of the phage linkage map. In mixed infection with a virulent mutant of the c 2 type, phage c 1, which lysogenizes very little or not at all by itself, lysogenizes as well as the wild type temperate phage. The early development of clones giving rise to lysogenic bacteria through the c 1– c 2 interaction has been studied. The significance of these interactions to an understanding of the processes leading to lysogeny is discussed.