Identification of the Salmonella phage ε34 tailspike gene

To understand the interaction between lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and proteins in molecular detail, a molecular genetic approach has been employed, using phage as a model system. The phage ε34 is a Salmonella phage whose tailspike protein (TSP) uses the host LPS as its initial host cell receptor. Previous studies indicated that there was a similarity between the well-studied tail protein of Salmonella phage P22 and the ε34. This study reports the identification of the gene for the ε34 TSP as well as its initial characterization. In addition, some aspects of the structure of the ε34 TSP have been deduced.