Glucosylation of Deoxyribonucleic Acid by Enzymes from Bacteriophage-infected Escherichia coli

Abstract

The deoxyribonucleic acid of bacteriophages T2, T4, and T6 contains glucose linked to the hydroxymethyl groups of hydroxymethylcytosine.The work of Sinsheimer, Volkin, Jesaitis, and of Lichtenstein and Cohen (l-4) established the presence of glucosyl-hydroxymethylcytosine residues in the deoxyribonucleic acid and indicated that there is a characteristic glucose to hydroxymethylcytosine ratio for each phage.Lehman and Pratt ( 5) have now published a detailed analysis showing four types of hydroxymethylcytosine residues which have the following distribution in these phages : Unglucosylated.in T2 25%, in T4 0, in T6 25% cr-Glucosyl.in T2 70'%, in T4 70%, in TG 3% P-Glucosyl.. in T2 0, in T4 30%, in TG 0 &Glucosyl-or-glucosyl (diglucosyl) in T2 5y0, in T4 0, in T6 72%