By Max, Rachel, Adis

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Agrawal

Abstract

Bacillus Bacteriophage Jabberwock, isolated from a soil sample, presents a promising candidate for phage therapy applications against pathogenic members of the species like Bacillus cereus and Bacillus anthracis. We performed a bioinformatic analysis of genes 1-10, 51-60 and 61-70 of the Jabberwock genome to predict encoded protein functions. Putative functions were assigned based on homology searches. Gene 1 exhibited a match for mRNA decapping proteins, potentially contributing to host gene regulation during infection. Gene 55 contained domains associated with both peptidase activity and SH3 superfamily proteins, suggesting a role in phage morphogenesis or host interaction. Gene 56 aligned with a hydrolase protein, which breaks down chemical bonds. Genes 57 and 59 displayed high homology to terminase large and small subunits, respectively, crucial for viral DNA packaging. Gene 68 showed similarity to transcriptional regulators, potentially affecting host gene expression during the phage lifecycle. Further investigation is required to functionally characterize uncharacterized proteins (genes 2-10, 51-54, 58, 61-67, and 69) and assess the therapeutic potential of Jabberwock.