Methylated Bases in the Host-Modified Deoxyribonucleic Acid of Escherichia coli and Bacteriophage λ

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Abstract
Gough, Michael (Brown University, Providence, R.I.), and Seymour Lederberg . Methylated bases in the host-modified deoxyribonucleic acid of Escherichia coli and bacteriophage λ. J. Bacteriol. 91: 1460–1468. 1966.—The deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from strains of Escherichia coli and phage λ was examined to determine whether the types or amounts of methionine-derived methylated bases present correlated with the host-specific modification of that DNA. The DNA of strain C600 (which has K-12 modification specificity) and of a modificationless mutant of C600 are similar in their content of 5-methylcytosine and 6-methylaminopurine. Strains Bc251 and its P1-lysogen differ in P1-controlled specificity, but they have the same content of 6-methylaminopurine, and both lack 5-methylcytosine in their DNA. Phage λ contains the same methylated bases as its host of origin, but in reduced amounts and in different proportions. Although minor amounts of these methylated bases may have importance as a result of their location, the presence of the majority of these methylated bases is irrelevant to the specificity of host modification of DNA.

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