We produce TEM images of bacteriophage for identification and characterization. Three photos per sample are provided for measurements with at least one nice “headshot” to upload for PhagesDB. Imaging requests can typically be performed within a few days of receipt or samples can be imaged live with the students watching via teleconference, which requires at least a two-week lead time for scheduling. You will be registered in the Bookitlab core facility management system, where you will need to submit a SEA-PHAGES imaging service request when you are ready to ship your samples. Resulting images will be provided via a shared Google Drive and need to be downloaded within one week (we do not store data or samples). Please acknowledge the KPIF in any resulting publications and share them with us.
Sample preparation: Students can prepare their own grids and/or provide lysate. If students prepare their grids, please have them produce two per sample with uranyl acetate. Grids must be completely dry before they are placed into the grid box. If students are unable to prepare grids, please provide 50 µl of lysate that is as freshly collected as possible. Lysate samples should be deposited in 1.5 ml centrifuge tubes clearly labeled with the sample number, which is easier to read than student names or initials. Tubes should wrapped in parafilm and placed inside a larger container such as a 50 ml centrifuge tube.
Shipping: Grid boxes can be shipped in a padded mailer. Lysate should be shipped in an insulated shipping box with a cold pack and labeled “keep refrigerated” so our departmental receiving office will refrigerate upon arrival. Use overnight shipping for lysate and make sure the package will arrive before the end of the week so the lysate doesn’t sit over the weekend. Send the tracking number to tagided@umbc.edu.
Tagide deCarvalho
(301) 529-5008
Warehouse B / Biology
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
1000 Hilltop Circle
Baltimore, MD 21250
Cost: Imaging takes approximately 15 mins per sample @ $180.00 per hour (TEM assisted usage, academic rate). Quotes and vendor information are available on request.
Billing: We require you to fill out a KPIF_Billing_info_form to provide us with the name, phone number, email, and address of your business contact/accounts payable person, as well as your organization’s federal Tax Identification Number. A bill will be sent by our external billing office approximately one month after the work is performed.
Setting the scale in ImageJ for phage morphology measurements
You can directly input the pixel size, which is easier and more accurate than measuring the scale bar.
- Analyze > Set Scale
- Enter 1 into the “Distance in pixels”.
- Input the pixel size into the “Known distance” field.
- Enter nm or into the “Unit of length” field
50,000x Pixel Size=0.2380
60,000x Pixel Size=0.1983
80,000x Pixel Size=0.1488
Publications with KPIF acquired phage images
Badiola MLP, Befano KD, Berger ML, Blanco CR, Ghunney N, Lee JG, Myat LP, Nguyen JK, Ober EM, Press-Porter KM, She BT, Watkins JS, 2023 UMBC Phage Hunters, Caruso SM. 2024. Genome sequence of bacteriophage GiJojo, isolated using Streptomyces mirabilis in Catonsville, Maryland. Microbiology Resource Announcements, 0058424.
2024. Desert diversity: genome sequence of Gordonia rubripertincta cluster DJ phage Mossy and cluster DV phage Erutan. Microbiology Resource Announcements,13:e01245-23.
Cousins, S.R., Dufour, G.R., Law, K., Nichols, R.M., Sladek, B.J., Aniapam, C.R., Tarbox, B.P. and Savage, E.F., 2024. Genome sequence of the lytic bacteriophage Alucard, a cluster EE actinophage. Microbiology Resource Announcements, 13(1), pp.e01017-23.
Horton EN, Beach EK, Cook KT, Cronin KG, Haag AT, Salter SM, Stojanovic NA, Fry ZE, Connolly BM, Hare RF, Ettinger AH, Poxleitner MK, Anders KR. 2024. Complete genome sequence of Microbacterium foliorum phage Curie, a podovirus isolated from soil in Spokane, Washington. Microbiology Resource Announcements, 13:e00408-24.
Jin H, Chana NK, Tang AL, Kaur P, Lamichhane B, Leung SC, Scheiderer D, Sivaprakasam V V, Marcelino DT, Hull GJ, Kamara TM, 2023 UMBC Phage Hunters, STEM BUILD at UMBC Cohort 7, Guimaro MC, Caruso SM. 2024. Genome characterization of BI2 subcluster Streptomyces scabiei bacteriophages GoblinVoyage and Doxi13. Microbiology Resource Announcements, e0058124.
Kumar SV, Schaffer N, Bharmal Z, Mood Q, , Erill I, Caruso SM. 2024. Complete genome and characteristics of cluster BC bacteriophage SoJo, isolated using Streptomyces mirabilis NRRL B-2400 in Columbia, MD. Microbiology Resource Announcements.0:e00068-24.
Cleary, Katherine E., Charles Pelagalli, Marly Cassford, Nathan Berry, Elizabeth Aguas, Brandon Kim, Tagide deCarvalho, Deborah Jacobs-Sera, Steven M. Caruso, Kathleen Cornely. 2023. Genome sequence of Streptomyces BM cluster phage Frankenweenie. Microbiology Resource Announcements.
deCarvalho, Tagide, Elia Mascolo, Steven M. Caruso, Júlia López-Pérez, Kathleen Weston-Hafer, Christopher Shaffer, Ivan Erill. 2023. Simultaneous entry as an adaptation to virulence in a novel satellite-helper system infecting Streptomyces species. International Society for Microbial Ecology.
Ismail, Ahmed, Tanuj Saini, Ahmed Al Qaffas, Ivan Erill, Steven M. Caruso, Louise Temple, and Allison A. Johnson. 2023. Evidence of a Set of Core-Function Genes in 16 Bacillus Podoviral Genomes with Considerable Genomic Diversity. Viruses, 15, no. 2: 276.
Davis, Faith, Baily Kakacek, Delaram Doorandish, Tamar Goldwasser, Neyiasuo Agboha, Steven M Caruso and Ivan Erill, 2022. Genome Sequences of Streptomyces Bacteriophages Fabian, FlowerPower, Geostin, RetrieverFever, and Vorvolakos. Microbiology Resource Announcements,
Eleven, E., Esparza, C., Abernathy, A., Bradshaw, A., Garcia, M., Jobe, N., Pyper, K., Skaar, C., Goncz, K., Sharbrough, J. and DeVeaux, L.C., 2022. Genome Sequences of Gordonia rubripertincta Phages LilyPad and PokyPuppy. Microbiology Resource Announcements, 11(11), pp.e00958-22.
Mascolo, Elia, Satish Adhikari, Steven M. Caruso, Tagide deCarvalho, Anna Folch Salvador, Joan Serra-Sagristà, Ry Young, Ivan Erill and Patrick D. Curtis, 2022. The transcriptional regulator CtrA controls gene expression in Alphaproteobacteria phages: Evidence for a lytic deferment pathway. Frontiers in Microbiology.
, , , , , , , 2021. UMBC Phage Hunters, STEM BUILD at UMBC Cohort 5, Complete Genome Sequences of Streptomyces Bacteriophages Annihilus, TonyStarch, Thiqqums, CricKo, ClubPenguin, RosaAsantewaa, and PherryCruz. Microbiology Resource Announcements, 11 (11).
Caruso, S. M., deCarvalho, T. N., Huynh, A., Morcos, G., Kuo, N., Parsa, S., & Erill, I. 2019. A novel genus of Actinobacterial Tectiviridae. Viruses, 11(12).
Blocker, D., Koert, M., Mattson, C., Patel, H., Patel, P., Patel, R., Paudel, H., null, n., Erill, I., Caruso Steven, M., Dennehy John, J., 2018. Complete Genome Sequences of Six BI Cluster Streptomyces Bacteriophages, HotFries, Moozy, Rainydai, RavenPuff, Scap1, and SenditCS. Microbiology Resource Announcements 7, e00993-00918.
Erill, I., & Caruso, S. M. 2018. Complete Genome Sequence of Streptomyces Bacteriophage Abt2graduatex2. Genome Announcements, 6(3), e01480-01417.
Lee, M., Puglisi, K. M., Erill, I., & Caruso, S. M. 2018. Complete Genome Sequences of HonestAbe, Anthony, and Taffo16, Three Cluster C Bacillus cereus Group Bacteriophages. Genome Announcements, 6(25), e00493-00418.
Erill, Ivan; Caruso, Steven M. 2017. Bacillus cereus Group Bacteriophage Flapjack Genome Sequence. Genome Announcements, 5, 31.