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How Do Bacteriophages Kill Bacteria in Phage Therapy?
Bacteriophages that specifically kill bacteria might help solve the growing problem of bacterial infections. The increasing number of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains is a serious problem in contemporary medicine. What is important is the fact that these bacteria do not implicate resistance to phage lysis mechanisms. Lytic bacteriophages are able to kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria at the end of the phage infection cycle. Most of them utilize two-component lysis systems to destroy a bacterial cell wall in order to release progeny virions. Thus, the development of phage therapy is a potential way to improve the treatment of bacterial infections.
Advantages of Phage Therapy
Phage therapy has many advantages that make it an attractive alternative to antibiotics. Antibiotics have a much wider spectrum and are likely to cause dysbiosis, secondary infections, and other side effects. Unlike antibiotics, phages are very specific to their hosts. Since phages infect only bacterial cells and have no effect on mammalian cells there is no risk of toxicity to the host. Moreover, phages are prevalent in nature, making the isolation and selection of new phages a relatively rapid process in contrast to the development of antibiotics. Thus, the development stage of a phage therapy is relatively inexpensive compared with that of antibiotics. Although bacteria may develop resistance to a particular phage specific to them, there is always a range of different phages with the same target spectrum. Also, a high frequency of mutation allows phages to co-evolve with their hosts, with strong evolutionary pressure to overcome any acquired resistance. Phages also have the advantage that they will only replicate in the presence of their host bacteria and are widely spread throughout the body after systemic administration, thus reaching the site of infection. Their minuscule size allows them to permeate areas that are impenetrable by drug molecules, for example, the blood-brain barrier. Some phages are even capable of infiltrating and disrupting biofilms. Once at the site of infection, the exponential growth of phages may allow a less frequent and lower dose of treatment.
Bacteriophages that specifically kill bacteria might help solve the growing problem of bacterial infections. The increasing number of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains is a serious problem in contemporary medicine. What is important is the fact that these bacteria do not implicate resistance to phage lysis mechanisms. Lytic bacteriophages are able to kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria at the end of the phage infection cycle. Most of them utilize two-component lysis systems to destroy a bacterial cell wall in order to release progeny virions. Thus, the development of phage therapy is a potential way to improve the treatment of bacterial infections.
Advantages of Phage Therapy
Phage therapy has many advantages that make it an attractive alternative to antibiotics. Antibiotics have a much wider spectrum and are likely to cause dysbiosis, secondary infections, and other side effects. Unlike antibiotics, phages are very specific to their hosts. Since phages infect only bacterial cells and have no effect on mammalian cells there is no risk of toxicity to the host. Moreover, phages are prevalent in nature, making the isolation and selection of new phages a relatively rapid process in contrast to the development of antibiotics. Thus, the development stage of a phage therapy is relatively inexpensive compared with that of antibiotics. Although bacteria may develop resistance to a particular phage specific to them, there is always a range of different phages with the same target spectrum. Also, a high frequency of mutation allows phages to co-evolve with their hosts, with strong evolutionary pressure to overcome any acquired resistance. Phages also have the advantage that they will only replicate in the presence of their host bacteria and are widely spread throughout the body after systemic administration, thus reaching the site of infection. Their minuscule size allows them to permeate areas that are impenetrable by drug molecules, for example, the blood-brain barrier. Some phages are even capable of infiltrating and disrupting biofilms. Once at the site of infection, the exponential growth of phages may allow a less frequent and lower dose of treatment.