name: Huang Wanzhen

Phages: tiny superheroes combat antibiotic resistant bacteria Tao Shuhan

Ma Tianyu
Xu Jiashang
strengths and weaknesses
introduction Advantages:
Disadvantages:
1. Narrow cleavage spectrum compared
Antibiotic resistance: 1. Excellent lysis of super bacteria: can easily solve to antibiotics(high degree of single-host
•occurs when bacteria evolve and find new ways to beat the medicine(1)=>super bacteria which are the drug-resistant bacteria that antibiotics cannot selectivity)=>It is often necessary to mix
insensitive to antibiotics. kill(1). different strains of phages to broaden
2. Target only harmful bacteria: the host spectrum of phages during the
Global threat: antibiotics, as broad-spectrum fungicides, will kill treatment and some bacteria cannot be
•to global health, food security, and development today(1) both useful and harmful bacteria, thus disrupts killed by phages found up to now(6).
•already killing 700,000 people a year, and it is predicted to cause 10 million deaths per year by 2050 if the the balance of human microbiome(1) 2. Phage tolerance: bacteria can develop
current situation is not improved(2) a specific landing pad=> exclusively target at one tolerance to phages in only 1 or 2
•misuse of antibiotics is still accelerating the process(1) type of bacteria => avoid attack beneficial bacteria days(6).
•growing number of bacterial infections are becoming harder to treat including pneumonia, tuberculosis, in human microbiome 3. May cause an immune response: can
gonorrhoea, and salmonellosis(1) 3. use less medicine dosage during the treatment: be found within the human
longer hospital stays, higher medical costs, and increased mortality rapid replication=> use a small amount can microbiome=> may also be killed by
achieve great lytic effects antibodies against certain phage(1).
Phage therapy as a renewed approach: 4. Reduce antibiotic use: 4. Imperfection of laws and regulations:
•Phages: a type of virus which exclusively infect bacteria(1) bacteria inevitably develop resistance to •As a virus
•Past: Discovered in early 20th century => medical potential realized soon => limited antibiotics. •compared with antibiotics, legal
purification technology=> drawbacks over benefits Carefully select phages to reduce the possibility of supervision and management of phages
•Present: technology development=> identify pathogens => make selectivity as a benefit bacteria develop tolerance(1). is not yet complete(1).
=> avoid side-effects compared to broad-spectrum antibiotics 5. Release dangerous bacterial antigens:
solution ：
1. cocktail therapy, also called HAART. large cleavage of targeted bacteria may
2. Antibiotics in combination with phages. result in release of harmful antigens(1).
3. Neutralize antibodies against phages in the body.
Phages Biology 4. Neutralize the toxin produced by bacterial
cleavage(1).
The structure of phage: Infection Process:
1. phage structures are diverse, but most of them share 1. a phage binds to the Bioengineering of phages:
some common characteristics receptor of a specific bacterium increase the therapeutic potential of phages via a range of mechanisms: expanded
2. nucleic acid may be ds DNA, ds RNA, ss DNA, ss RNA and injects its genome into the host range, switching host tropism, delivery of exogenous genes, or modification of
3. The following figure shows the structure of phage T4 bacterium phage capsids(7).
4. it has an icosahedral head called capsid and a linear 2. the genome replicates
double-stranded viral genome are inside(3). 3. the genome transcribes and
5. The capsid of phage T4 is attached to a helical tail translates to produce new shell(4) Industrial phage propagation strain:
through a neck. 4. new genomes are packaged into new future prospect •Bacterial chassis strains: serve as basic platforms for the construction of industrial
6.The Tail contain a series of tail fibers and tail pins at the shell and phage release toxins to lyse phage propagation strains(8).
end. These specialized syringe-like structures bind to bacterium wall(4) •Use bioengineering to construct bacterial chassis strains(8).
receptors on the bacteria surface(3). •Function: ensure the safety of therapeutic phage preparations and reduce the cost
of phage production substantially(8).

People:
4 Active interest and signs of a more open mind are shown to assess the possible
1 benefits of phage therapy(8).

Clinical trials:
•To demonstrate the efficacy and safety of phage application(8).
2 •National and international authorities are opening their doors to such trials, and
3 are prone to regulate phage therapy if it is found to be effective and safe(8).
References
1. Kortright KE, Chan BK, Koff JL, Turner PE. Phage Therapy: A Renewed Approach to Combat Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. Cell Host Microbe. 2019 Feb 13;25(2):219–32.
2. Antibiotic resistance [Internet]. [cited 2021 Apr 17]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antibiotic-resistance
3. Bacteriophage: Structure, Replication and Uses - Learn Microbiology Online [Internet]. [cited 2021 Apr 18]. Available from: https://microbeonline.com/bacteriophage-structure-replication-use/
4. Bacteriophage: A solution to our antibiotics problem? How we can us a virus to fight bacterial infection [Internet]. [cited 2021 Apr 18]. Available from: https://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2018/bacteriophage-solution-antibiotics-problem/
5. Viruses [Internet]. [cited 2021 Apr 18]. Available from: https://cronodon.com/BioTech/Virus_Tech.html
Figure 2; the structure of phage T4(5) 6. Gurney J, Brown SP, Kaltz O, Hochberg ME. Steering phages to combat bacterial pathogens. Trends Microbiol. 2020 Feb;28(2):85–94.
7. Gordillo Altamirano FL, Barr JJ. Phage Therapy in the Postantibiotic Era. Clin Microbiol Rev [Internet]. 2019 Jan 16 [cited 2021 Apr 18];32(2). Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6431132/
8. Górski A, Międzybrodzki R, Łobocka M, Głowacka-Rutkowska A, Bednarek A, Borysowski J, et al. Phage Therapy: What Have We Learned? Viruses. 2018 Jun;10(6):288.