Role of the bacteriophage lambda exo-xis region in the virus development.

Various processes of bacteriophage lambda development in Escherichia coli cells bearing either the whole lambda exo-xis region (with truncated, thus nonfunctional, exo and xis genes) or particular genes from this region were investigated. The presence of either the exo-xis region or the ea8.5 gene on a plasmid resulted in formation of fuzzy plaques by infecting phage. Both efficiency of plating and efficiency of lysogenization were decreased in such hosts. On the other hand, neither the efficiency of adsorption nor intracellular lytic development of the infecting phage (measured in one-step-growth experiments) was affected while significantly more host cells survived the infection, when containing the exo-xis region. Although no effects of the exo-xis region on the activity of the p (L) promoter was detected, this region contributed to a decreased transcription from the cII-stimulated promoters p (I), p (aQ) and p (E). These results, together with the results of measurement of efficiency of plating of phages bearing mutations in cI, cII and cIII genes on hosts containing the exo-xis region, strongly suggest that genes from this region (especially ea8.5) are involved in the regulation of bacteriophage lambda development at the stage of the lysis-vs.-lysogenization decision.