Bacteriophages: an overview of the control strategies against multiple bacterial infections in different fields

Bacteriophages (phages/viruses) need host bacteria to replicate and propagate. Primarily, a bacteriophage contains a head/capsid to encapsidate the genetic material. Some phages contain tails. Phages encode endolysins to hydrolyze bacterial cell wall. The two main classes of phages are lytic or virulent and lysogenic or temperate. In comparison with antibiotics, to deal with bacterial infections, phage therapy is thought to be more effective. In 1921, the use of phages against bacterial infections was first demonstrated. Later on, in humans, phage therapy was used to treat skin infections caused byPseudomonas species. Furthermore, phages were successfully employed against infections in animals – calves, lambs, and pigs infected withEscherichia coli. In agriculture, for instance, phages have successfully been used e.g., Apple blossom infection, caused byErwinia amylovora, was effectively catered with the use of bacteriophages. Bacteriophages were also used to controlE. coli,Salmonella,Listeria, andCampylobacter contamination in food. Comparatively, phage display is a recently discovered technology, whereby, bacteriophages play a significant role. This review is an effort to collect almost recent and relevant information regarding applications and complications associated with the use of bacteriophages.

Source: Journal of Basic Microbiology - November 28, 2018 Category: Microbiology Authors: Muhsin Jamal, Sayed M. A. U. S. Bukhari, Saadia Andleeb, Muhammad Ali, Sana Raza, Muhammad A. Nawaz, Tahir Hussain, Sadeeq u. Rahman, Syed S. A. Shah Tags: REVIEW Source Type: research