The level of spontaneous phage production and sensitivity to melioidosis phages of museum cultures of Pseudomonas pseudomallei]

The phage-producing activity and sensitivity of museum cultures of a melioidosis agent to melioidosis phages have been studied. Most cultures show spontaneous phage-production, though its level differs in strains. Some of the melioidosis cultures demonstrate lack of phages. The fact that these strains have different sensitivity to chloroform lysate of cultures producing phages indicates their possible lysogenic state. Electron microscopy has shown the presence of at least tow morphological types of phages in P. pseudomallei C-141. These data confirm existence of polysogeny in the melioidosis agent.