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Phage for Biocontrol

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Bacteriophage Applications - Historical Perspective and Future Potential

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology ((BRIEFSBIOCHEM))

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Abstract

Bacteriophage (phage) therapy, or the therapeutic use of phage for the treatment of bacterial diseases, is a classical approach that was originally disregarded due to inconsistent results and with the advent of antibiotic drugs. However, with a greater understanding of phage biology and the pressing need for new and innovative antimicrobial strategies to challenge the ever-increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogens, phage therapy is seen to have great potential for reintroduction as antimicrobial strategy, although not without many limitations. In this chapter, by pointing out the limitations of native bacteriophage (phage) therapy, engineered phage-based bactericidal delivery vehicles will be introduced as a treatment approach for the biocontrol of a variety of important pathogens. Such an efficient approach would be suitable for concurrent treatment with standard antibiotics and possibly become a suitable replacement. The bacterial infections to be considered will include those due to: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Chlamydia trachomatis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Helicobacter pylori. The pathogens will be described along with the efficiency of the phage-based methods to be investigated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Pharmacy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada

    Jessica Nicastro, Zahra Khazaei & Jonathan Blay

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  1. Jessica Nicastro
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  2. Zahra Khazaei
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  3. Jonathan Blay
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Correspondence to Jessica Nicastro .

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Nicastro, J., Khazaei, Z., Blay, J. (2016). Phage for Biocontrol. In: Bacteriophage Applications - Historical Perspective and Future Potential. SpringerBriefs in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-45791-8_2

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