Escherichia virus T5
Escherichia virus T5, sometimes called Bacteriophage T5 is a caudal virus within the family Demerecviridae. This bacteriophage specifically infects E. coli bacterial cells and follows a lytic life cycle.Structure and genome
The T5 virion includes a 90 nanometer icosahedral capsid and a 250 nanometer-long flexible, non-contractile tail. The capsid contains the phage's 121750 base pair, double-stranded DNA genome.Infection
Bacteriophage T5 has been shown to infect E. coli after its receptor binding protein, pb5, binds to the host cell's outer membrane ferrichrome transporter, FhuA. The binding triggers structural changes in pb5 and eventually leads to DNA release from the phage capsid.
