Complete genome sequence and proteomic analysis of a thermophilic bacteriophage BV1

Viruses of thermophiles are of great interest due to their roles in gene transfer, global geochemical cycle and evolution of life on earth. However, the thermophilic bacteriophages have not been studied extensively. In this investigation, a typical bacteriophage BV1 was obtained from a thermophilic bacterium Geobacillus sp. 6k512, which was isolated from an inshore hot spring in Xiamen of China. The BV1 contained a double-stranded linear DNA of 35 055 bp, which encodes 54 open reading frames (ORFs). Interestingly, eight of the 54 BV1 ORFs shared sequence similarities to genes from human disease-relevant bacteria. Seven proteins of the purified BV1 virions were identified by proteomic analysis. Determination of BV1 functional genomics would facilitate the better understanding of the mechanism for virus-thermophile interaction.