Final answer:
During the lytic cycle, new phages are released from the bacteria by digesting the host cell. This cycle includes stages such as attachment, entry, biosynthesis, maturation, and release, ultimately resulting in lysis of the bacterial cell and the freeing of new virions.
Step-by-step explanation:
New phages are released from the bacteria by digesting the host cell during the lytic cycle. In this process, a virulent phage such as the T-even phage infects the cell and then takes control, reproducing new phages within the bacterial cell. Eventually, the host cell is lysed (destroyed), which releases the newly assembled viruses into the environment to infect additional cells.
The lytic cycle consists of several stages, starting with the attachment of the phage to the bacterial surface receptors and followed by the injection of its genome into the host. During the biosynthesis stage, the phage synthesizes virus-encoded endonucleases to degrade the bacterial chromosome and uses the host machinery to replicate and assemble new viral components. The final stage is the release where phages burst out of the host cell through a process called lysis.
In contrast, the lysogenic cycle involves the integration of the phage DNA into the host genome without immediate destruction of the host cell. The phage can switch to the lytic cycle under certain conditions, such as environmental stressors.