Project description:Lactococcus lactis is one of the most important bacteria in dairy fermentations, being used in the production of cheese and buttermilk. The processes are vulnerable to phage attacks, and undefined mixtures of lactococcal strains are often used to reduce the risk of bacteriophage caused fermentation failure. Other preventive measures include culture rotation to prevent phage build-up and phage monitoring. Phage diversity, rather than quantity, is the largest threat to fermentations using undefined mixed starter cultures. We have developed a method for culture independent diversity analysis of lytic bacteriophages of the 936 group, the phages most commonly found in dairies. Using, as a target, a highly variable region of the portal protein gene, we demonstrate an unprecedented diversity and the presence of new 936 phages in samples taken from cheese production. The method should be useful to the dairy industry and starter culture manufacturers in their efforts to reduce phage problems.
Project description:This series represents the gene expression study of phages DT1 and 2972 during the whole process of infection. Gene expression was measured at nine time intervals (0, 2, 7, 12, 17, 22, 27, 32, 37 minutes) during phage infection.
Project description:This series represents the gene expression study of phages DT1 and 2972 during the whole process of infection. Gene expression was measured at nine time intervals (0, 2, 7, 12, 17, 22, 27, 32, 37 minutes) during phage infection. Keywords: time-course
Project description:Splenomegaly is caused by several pathological conditions, including portal hypertension, which is most frequently caused by chronic liver disease (e.g., liver cirrhosis). The detailed mechanisms through which portal pressure induces splenomegaly and the precise pathophysiological conditions in portal hypertension-induced splenomegaly remain to be fully elucidated. We used microarrays to identify the differential gene expression underlying the portal hypertension-induced splenomegaly.