NEET BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Tail fibers: Tail fibers are used by bacteriophages to attach to host cell receptors. The tail fibers are made up of five different proteins. These proteins bind to each other to form a tail fiber.

Detailed explanation-2: -The tail fibers (or spikes) primarily determine the host specificity (or range) and phage infection process [12–15].

Detailed explanation-3: -Phage tail fibres are elongated protein assemblies capable of specific recognition of bacterial surfaces during the first step of viral infection1, 2, 3, 4. The folding of these complex trimeric structures often requires a phage-encoded tail fibre assembly (Tfa) protein5, 6, 7.

Detailed explanation-4: -To infect bacteria, most bacteriophages employ a ‘tail’ that stabs and pierces the bacterium’s membrane to allow the virus’s genetic material to pass through. The most sophisticated tails consist of a contractile sheath surrounding a tube akin to a stretched coil spring at the nanoscale.