Temporal origin of viral phospholipids of the enveloped bacteriophage ϕ6

Abstract

The enveloped bacteriophage ϕ6 contains a higher relative level of the negatively charged phospholipid phosphatidylglycerol than is found in the membranes of the host bacterium. During infection of Pseudomonas phaseolicola with ϕ6, the level of phosphatidylglycerol synthesis increases significantly. The lipid used to form the viral envelope consists almost entirely of cellular phospholipids synthesized before infection and phosphatidylglycerol synthesized after infection. Based on these and previously published results, a speculative model for this viral envelope formation process is presented.