The experiment was performed nine times independently. Statistics ANOVA and regressions (linear or quadratic) were used to

detect significant relationships between phage traits and plaque properties. Lysis time (continuous) adsorption rate (continuous) and date (categorical) were used as explanatory variables in our statistical models. All statistical analyses were performed using the software package JMP, ver. 7.0.2 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC) for the Macintosh computer. The 95% confidence intervals for various ratios shown in Figures 4A to 4F were calculated by following method devised by Fieller [59]. Appendix Appendix List of models on plaque formation Equation1 Main assumptions Reference (1) phage propagating through a constant host density [19], eqn. 18 (2) phage adsorption/desorption processes are fast relative

to cell death rate [20], eqn. 6a (3) larger NVP-LDE225 chemical structure burst size [20], eqn. 6b (4) phage adsorption/desorption processes are slow relative Proteasome assay to cell death rate [20], eqn. A8 (5) phage adsorption process is fast relative to cell death rate [20], eqn. A9 (6) hindered diffusion through a high constant host density [23], eqn. 14, solution 1 (7) hindered diffusion through a high constant host density [23], eqn. 14, solution 2 1 The variables are: c, the plaque wavefront velocity; D, the virion diffusivity; N o , the lawn bacterial density; L, the latent period (or lysis time); k 1 , the adsorption constant of the phage particle; k -1 , the desorption constant; and k 2 , the rate constant for lysis. Acknowledgements We would like to thank Steve Abedon for providing Non-specific serine/threonine protein kinase various unpublished manuscripts and documents regarding phage plaque formation. We would also like to thank Kurt McKean for providing the Qcount counter, Dr. G. Esteban Fernandez from University of Missouri for his help in writing macros for ImageJ,

S. Bangre for his “”Merge”" program in pearl, and various anonymous reviewers for thorough and helpful comments. This study is supported by National Institute of Health GM072815 to INW. Electronic supplementary material Additional file 1: Model testing. Testing of models on plaque size and plaque productivity. (DOC 84 KB) Additional file 2: Primer sequences and plasmids. PCR primer sequences and plasmids used to generate isogenic λ strains. (DOC 37 KB) Additional file 3: Examples of adsorption rate data and adsorption curves. Examples of adsorption rate data and adsorption curves for the highest (J1077 Stf+) and lowest (JWT Stf-) adsorption rate phages used in this study. (DOC 46 KB) References 1. d’Hérelle F: Sur un microbe invisible antagoniste des bacilles dysentériques. Compt rend Acad Sci 1917, 165:373. 2. d’Hérelle F: On an invisible microbe antagonistic CDK inhibitor toward dysenteric bacilli: brief note by Mr. F. D’Herelle, presented by Mr. Roux. 1917. Res Microbiol 2007,158(7):553–554.PubMedCrossRef 3. Yin J: A quantifiable phenotype of viral propagation. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 1991,174(2):1009–1014.PubMedCrossRef 4.