Isolation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa specific phages with broad activity spectra

The aim of the study was to screen various kinds of samples for Pseudomonas aeruginosa specific phages and to isolate and partially characterize those with broad activity spectra. The Pseudomonas specific phages were isolated using an enrichment procedure with single strains or the cocktail of P. aeruginosa strains as hosts. Using the described procedure, phages were successfully isolated only from water samples, while in soil and feces no Pseudomonas specific phages were detected. The lytic spectra of isolated phages were determined by spot method on lawns of 33 P. aeruginosa strains and five species belonging to family Enterobacteriaceae. The results showed that among isolated phages, 001A, δ, and I possessed the broad activity spectra, as were able to plaque on more than 50% of tested P. aeruginosa strains, while none of the phages were able to lyse the other tested species. Significant differences in phage activity spectra were not observed when P. aeruginosa cocktail was applied for sample enrichment. The most of the phages examined by electron microscopy belonged to family Siphoviridae, while the broad activity spectra isolates, except for 001A, possessed morphological characteristics of family Podoviridae. Digested DNA of the phages δ and I showed similar patterns, indicating the prevalence and success of this phage type in the environment. © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.