AUTHOR=Oliveira Joana , Mahony Jennifer , Hanemaaijer Laurens , Kouwen Thijs R. H. M. , Neve Horst , MacSharry John , van Sinderen Douwe 

TITLE=Detecting Lactococcus lactis Prophages by Mitomycin C-Mediated Induction Coupled to Flow Cytometry Analysis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2017

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2017.01343

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2017.01343

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Most analyzed <italic>Lactococcus lactis</italic> strains are predicted to harbor one or more prophage genomes within their chromosome; however, the true extent of the inducibility and functionality of such prophages cannot easily be deduced from sequence analysis alone. Chemical treatment of lysogenic strains with Mitomycin C is known to cause induction of temperate phages, though it is not always easy to clearly identify a lysogenic strain or to measure the number of released phage particles. Here, we report the application of flow cytometry as a reliable tool for the detection and enumeration of released lactococcal prophages using the green dye SYTO-9.</p>