Bacteriophage MS2

The bacteriophage MS2 or Bacillus phage M2 (Leviviridae) infects Bacillus subtilis. MS2 phage is an icosahedral bacteriophage with a diameter of 27-34nm and an isoelectric point (pI) of 3.9. MS2 phage can be propagated in Escherichia Coli, commonly E. Coli ATCC 15597.

Genetics
This phage has a very small genome which is 3,569 nucleotides long. In 1976 the complete RNA sequence of Bacteriophage MS2 was determined, compared to the DNA sequence of the Phi-X174 phage, which was determined by Fred Sanger and his team in 1977. These two genomes were the first to be determined in scientific history.

In 1962 it was established that the RNA of the phage was in a ring-structure. In 1972 a gene of Bageriophage M2 was the first gene of which the nucleotide sequence was known. In 1976, it was the first organism (virus) of which the complete genome was sequenced, by Walter Fiers and his team at the University of Ghent (Ghent, Belgium).