Cody J D, Conway T W
J Virol. 1981 Jul;39(1):60-6. doi: 10.1128/JVI.39.1.60-66.1981.
Complexes of f2 phage RNA and its A protein, or maturation protein, transfect Escherichia coli cells much better than does protein-free RNA. We used these complexes to introduce the bacteriophage f2 lysis gene into cells. The A protein-RNA complex was found to kill cells, probably by causing them to leak large macromolecules. Previously induced beta-galactosidase leaked from cells treated either with the A protein-RNA complex or with lethal but noninfectious complexes that had been treated with formaldehyde. This observation was consistent with an earlier finding that formaldehyde-treated f2 RNA stimulates the in vitro synthesis of a lysis protein. The complexes did not stimulate the rate of leakage of beta-galactosidase from a streptomycin-resistant mutant known to be lysis defective. On the other hand, the rate of leakage was increased in a double mutant resistant to both streptomycin and rifampin and which is lysed normally by f2 bacteriophage.
f2噬菌体RNA与其A蛋白（即成熟蛋白）形成的复合物转染大肠杆菌细胞的效果比无蛋白RNA要好得多。我们利用这些复合物将噬菌体f2裂解基因导入细胞。发现A蛋白-RNA复合物能杀死细胞，可能是通过使细胞泄漏大分子来实现的。先前诱导产生的β-半乳糖苷酶会从用A蛋白-RNA复合物处理过的细胞中泄漏出来，也会从用甲醛处理过的具有致死性但无感染性的复合物处理过的细胞中泄漏出来。这一观察结果与早期发现一致，即甲醛处理过的f2 RNA能刺激体外裂解蛋白的合成。这些复合物不会刺激已知存在裂解缺陷的链霉素抗性突变体中β-半乳糖苷酶的泄漏速率。另一方面，对链霉素和利福平都有抗性且能被f2噬菌体正常裂解的双突变体中，泄漏速率增加了。
