Cascade of overlapping late genes in bacteriophage T4.

The DNA sequences of genes 9, 10, 11, 12, and wac, which encode the structural proteins in the bacteriophage T4 base plate, were determined. These genes form a single operon which is transcribed in a clockwise direction from a single late promoter in the TATAAATA region located upstream of gene 9 at position -10. A feature of the operon is an overlap between the termination codon of each upstream gene and the initiation codon of its downstream gene. With the exception of gene 10, the open reading frames encode proteins which have a calculated molecular mass close to that obtained experimentally. The reading frame of gene 10 encodes a polypeptide with a calculated molecular mass of 66.2 kDa, which is at least 22 kDa less than that in the phage particle. Thus the mature protein encoded by gene 10 is possibly a product of the fusion of two adjacent phage genes. The hybrid protein may be formed by a frameshift during the translation of messenger RNA at the end of gene 9 or gene 10.