Visualisation of the adsorption of phages on E. coli bacteria. (IMAGE)

Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ

Visualisation of the adsorption of phages on E. coli bacteria.

Caption

a) Phages infect host bacteria by attaching the ends of their tail fibres to the surface of the bacteria and injecting phage-specific nucleic acid. b), c), d) show that in order to “hitch a ride” on the bacteria, the phages nestle flat against them without penetrating them and remain infectious. The images were taken with a helium ion microscope from the UFZ research platform ProVIS.

Credit

UFZ / ISME Journal

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CC BY

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