In the lytic cycle, what happens to the bacterium after the phage injects its DNA?

After a bacteriophage injects its DNA into a bacterium during the lytic cycle, the bacterium is immediately taken over by the viral genetic material. This phage DNA hijacks the cellular machinery of the bacterium, leading to the replication of viral components. The bacterium effectively becomes a factory for producing new virions, which are the complete virus particles.

During this stage, the bacterial cell's normal functions are disrupted as it prioritizes the production of phage components over its own biological processes. This culminates in the assembly of new phages within the host cell. Eventually, the process leads to the lysis, or breaking open, of the bacterium, releasing these new virions into the environment, where they can infect more cells.

This dynamic illustrates the aggressive nature of the lytic cycle, contrasting sharply with other potential scenarios where the viral DNA might remain inactive or allow the bacterium to continue functioning normally, which does not occur in this cycle.