Bacteria-fighting technology -
every year. Scientists are discovering more using creative microbiology experiments and advanced computational tools. They have already found tens of thousands of new microbes and dozens of new immune systems.
Scientists hope to find more tools that could help them engineer phages to target a wider range of bacteria. Sign up for our weekly newsletter. Science is only half of the solution when it comes to fighting these microbes.
Multiple companies are engineering phages or identifying naturally occurring phages to destroy specific harmful bacteria. Companies like Felix Biotechnology and Cytophage are producing specialized bacteria-killing phages to replace antibiotics in human health and agriculture.
BiomX aims to treat infections common in chronic diseases like cystic fibrosis and inflammatory bowel disease using both natural and engineered phage cocktails. Thinking globally, the company PhagePro is using phages to treat cholera.
These deadly bacteria affect people primarily in Africa and Asia. Alongside the commercialization of phage therapy, policies that facilitate safe testing and regulation of the technology are vital. Proactive planning will help us combat whatever antibiotic-resistant bacteria might spread.
Menu Close Home Edition Africa Australia Brasil Canada Canada français España Europe France Global Indonesia New Zealand United Kingdom United States. Edition: Available editions Europe. Become an author Sign up as a reader Sign in. Kevin Doxzen , Arizona State University. Author Kevin Doxzen Hoffmann Postdoctoral Fellow, Arizona State University.
Replacing antibiotics with phage Since the discovery of penicillin in , antibiotics have changed modern medicine. By Larry Greenemeier. If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
Antibiotics have proved to be a valuable weapon in the fight against infection, but their popularity has also become their undoing. Although the drugs cripple harmful microbes from within, bacteria that survive such sabotage tend to develop resistance that makes them even more dangerous.
To counter this, a team of researchers led by IBM Research—Almaden in San Jose, Calif. Just as important, upon completing their mission these nanoassassins would biodegrade harmlessly within the body. coli, K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa, by inhibiting a protein that drives the formation of resistance capabilities within the bacteria.
A study published in The Lancet in January found that antimicrobial resistance was the direct cause of at least 1. Antibiotic resistant bacteria have a host of different proteins in their arsenals that neutralise antibiotics.
To function properly, these resistance proteins have to be folded into the right shapes. For their proof-of-concept study, published in the journal eLife , the researchers inhibited DsbA, using chemicals that cannot be used directly in human patients, to prevent the formation of resistance proteins.
The team is now planning to work on developing inhibitors that can be safely used in humans while also achieving the same protective effect.
image: A close up Bactdria-fighting Bacteria-fighting technology dendritic hydrogel developed at KTH Royal Institute Bacteria-fighting technology Technology view more. Reporting in the Journal of the American Bacteria-fighting technology Tecunology, researchers from KTH Metabolic rate and overall health Institute of Technology, Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital say Antibacterial pet toys the Bavteria-fighting treatment Antibacterial pet toys based Bactetia-fighting specially-developed hydrogels consisting of polymers known as dendritic macromolecules. KTH Professor Michael Malkoch says the hydrogels are formed spontaneously when sprayed on wounds and percent degradable and non-toxic. Karolinska Institutet Professor Annelie Brauner says that despite containing no antibiotics, the hydrogels show excellent antibacterial qualities and were effective against a broad spectrum of clinical bacteria, killing both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, including drug-resistant strains isolated from wounds. The material also reduces inflammation. The hydrogels were tested against several clinically relevant infectious bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus S. aureusand Pseudomonas aeruginosa P.
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