Can Bacteriophages be an alternative to Antibiotics?

The question about bacteriophages being an alternative way to fight against Super-bugs and other bacteria has been a topic for many decades now. A super-bug is a bacterium that has developed resistance to most of our available antibiotics. It's no surprise as to why this has been a topic for decades, It was bound to do so at some point in time. Mankind has made so much progress in science and technological advancements, but we have come to realize that as we find solutions to current questions and problems, more questions are being posed and more problems needing solutions also come about. The rate at which certain bacteria are becoming resistant to most or all our anti-microbial agent is alarming. This means a solution must be found and also must be found quickly.





What is a Bacteriophage?

BACTERIOPHAGE

The bacteriophage, informally known as "phage" is a virus that attacks and destroy bacteria. They are found almost everywhere on earth as they prey on bacteria which also exist almost everywhere on our planet.





How does the virus attack and destroy bacteria?





The virus destroys the bacteria by lysis of the bacterial wall. It attaches itself on to the surface of the bacteria and injects its DNA into the bacterial cell, the DNA of the virus then overrides the metabolism of the cell and then starts reproducing in the bacteria, after reproduction it leaves the bacterial cell by bursting through its walls thereby causing the death of the bacteria. The virus destroys the bacteria by lysis of the bacterial wall. It attaches itself on to the surface of the bacteria and injects its DNA into the bacterial cell, the DNA of the virus then overrides the metabolism of the cell and then starts reproducing in the bacteria, after reproduction it leaves the bacterial cell by bursting through its walls thereby causing the death of the bacteria.









Why has the phage emerged as the next major alternative to antibiotics?



The bacteriophage has emerged as the next big thing in our fight against super-bugs and other bacterial infections and diseases due to their specificity. They are very specific and thus attack only a particular bacterium and its closely related species. Owing to this specificity, we know that bacteriophages do not harm humans, meaning the possibility for the development of a phage-therapy can be developed and encouraged for bacteria that have proven resistant to our current antibiotics.

Moreover some anti-microbial agents are broad-spectrum agents and thus do not only destroy the targeted bacteria but also destroy the natural bacteria found within the human body causing other health problems but with the specificity of "phages", they only attack and destroy the targeted bacteria leaving the natural ones unharmed in the process.

Will bacteria develop resistance against the phage?



When antibiotics were discovered, it was one of the biggest breakthroughs in human history and also helped push medical advancement and treatment of bacteria-related infections to new heights. But it was only recently that we realised all this while we have been improperly and recklessly using antibiotics, we've created resistant strains of bacteria (Super-bugs) that these antibiotics easily destroyed years ago when they were discovered. So logically reasoning if reckless, improper and unnecessary use of antibiotics created antibiotic-resistant strains then it means same thing when done with the "phages" will also create phage-resistant bacteria but there is a catch. That catch is, while the bacteria can mutate and evolve to become resistant to the "phages" the "phages" can, and to some extent also mutate and evolve to still be able to destroy the bacteria.

Can the phages be commercialised?



If phages are to be used as treatment against bacteria and other super-bugs then they must be produced on large scale so they can be made accessible to everyone. D’Herelle’s Commercial Laboratory based in Paris produced at least five phage preparations against various bacterial infections. The preparations have been named Bact´e-coli-phage, Bact- e-rhino -phage, Bact- e-intesti -phage, Bact- e- pyo- phage, and Bact- e-sta -phy-phage, and they were marketed by what later became the large French company L’Oreal. Therapeutic phages have also been produced in the US, In the 1940s, the Eli Lilly Company (Indianapolis, Ind.) produced seven phage products for human use, including preparations targeted against staphylococci, streptococci, Escherichia coli, and other bacterial pathogens.









Are there side-effects and barriers in the use of "bacteria-eating-virus"?



Just like so many drugs in use today, the use of "phages" as a treatment might have side effects that we might not know and probably might only discover later. We might not even know what the effects of these bacteriophages might be on an Immuno-compromised patient.



There are so many factors, checks and test the "phage-therapy" is going to have to pass before they are legalized by the Food and Drug Authorities of any country. E.g. When large numbers of bacteria are rapidly lysed in the body, it could lead to quick and harmful release of bacterial endotoxins and other bacterial components such lipopolysaccharides that can cause serious health problems to a patient. However to overcome this problem a group of researchers engineered phages that can destroy bacteria and still not cause the release of endotoxins and the other harmful bacterial components, this way the problems associated with the release of these substances will be avoided.





Conclusion

Currently, it is safe to say phage-therapy might be the next major alternative to antibiotics and In as much as this has been a topic for decades, we still don't know everything about the bacteria-eating virus but gradually through research and clinical trails, we would discover and perfect the use of bacteriophages as a treatment for bacterial infections in humans and even if it can't be used in human treatment, they can be used in our food industries against bacteria that cause food poisoning among many others. Much more research needs to be done to understand everything there's to know about it. Questions like, " Would the immune system attack the virus?" " Would it create problems during organ transplants?" " Would it negatively impact pregnant women and immuno-compromised patients when used?" among many others, when these questions have been answered the way forward will definitely be uncovered.



Do you think the use of bacteriophage will be a better alternative to antibiotics?

References:

https://health.ucsd.edu/news/topics/phage-therapy/pages/phage-101.aspx