Bacteriophage Mu, also known as
mu phage or
mu bacteriophage, is a
mulikevirus (the first of its kind to be identified) of the family
Myoviridae which has been shown to cause genetic
transposition. It is of particular importance as its discovery in
E. coli by Larry Taylor was among the first observation of
insertion elements in a genome. This discovery opened up the world to an investigation of
transposable elements and their effects on a wide variety of organisms. While mu was specifically involved in several distinct areas of research (Including
E. coli,
maize, and
HIV), the wider implications of transposition and insertion transformed the entire field of
genetics.