Bacteriophage imaging: past, present and future

Publication date: Available online 28 May 2018Source: Research in MicrobiologyAuthor(s): Gabriel MF. Almeida, Miika Leppänen, Ilari J. Maasilta, Lotta-Riina SundbergAbstractThe visualization of viral particles only became possible after the advent of the electron microscope. The first bacteriophage images were published in 1940 and were soon followed by many other publications that helped to elucidate the structure of the particles and their interaction with the bacterial hosts. As sample preparation improved and new technologies were developed, phage imaging became important approach to morphologically classify these viruses and helped to understand its importance in the biosphere. In this review we discuss the main milestones in phage imaging, how it affected our knowledge on these viruses and recent developments in the field.

Source: Research in Microbiology - July 10, 2018 Category: Microbiology Source Type: research