Discovery and Genomic Characterization of Cluster EE Bacteriophage Rira, Isolated Using Microbacterium foliorum

Microbacteriophage Rira was collected from a soil sample in Rockdale, Texas, and isolated on a Microbacterium foliorum NRRL B-24224 culture.The 16,971-bp double-stranded DNA genome contains 25 predicted protein-coding genes.Based on gene-content similarity, Rira was assigned to actinobacteriophage cluster EE, where it shares >98% nucleotide identity with bacteriophages Slizam and Stem.Comparison with the Texas isolates Loca and Godfather revealed conserved gene order and cohesive ends, with the largest difference in gene 13, which encodes a minor tail protein that is roughly half the length of its Loca and Godfather homologs and belongs to a different pham.