Isolation and characterization ofLeuconostoc oenosbacteriophages from wine and sugarcane

Twenty bacteriophages specific for Leuconostoc oenos were isolated from South African red wines and sugarcane. Leuconostoc oenos ML34 and PSU-1, used commercially by the wine industry, were sensitive to some of the phages. Ten of the 39 L. oenos strains tested were resistant or insensitive to all phages. The bacteriophages were morphologically similar to Bradley's type B phages, possessing hexagonal heads and long flexible, non-contractile tails. Restriction endonuclease analysis of phage DNA revealed the existence of five genetic groups.