Program of bacteriophage gh-1 DNA transcription in infected Pseudomonas putida.

The program of transcription in phage gh-1-infected Pseudomonas putida was examined. It was found that the host P. putida RNA polymerase transcribes early RNA from the L strand of gh-1 DNA during the initial stages of infection. The host RNA polymerase is also undoubtedly responsible for transcription of complementary RNA late in the infectious cycle because complementary RNA was not transcribed when rifampin was added to the infected cell culture. The gh-1-induced RNA polymerase transcribes late RNA from the L strand of gh-1 DNA late in the infectious cycle. The P. putida RNA polymerase transcribed only early RNA from primarily the L strand of gh-1 DNA in vitro when the molar ratio of enzyme to gh-1 DNA was 0.5. When the molar ratio was 50 the P. putida RNA polymerase transcribed RNA from the H strand of gh-1 DNA as well as complementary RNA. Thgh-1 RNA polymerase transcribed only the L strand of gh-1 DNA in vitro but transcribed both early and late RNA.