Reinventing the fight against bacteria, one phage at a time.

PAS: The Fast PASS to The Future “ Two Can Play at That Game” by Ellie Jameson In recent years, antibiotic resistant bacteria, also referred to as “superbugs,” have become a major threat, adapting to withstand widely used antibiotic treatment. The fast reproduction of bacteria has brought constant mutations, with some mutations making stronger bacteria that survive and reproduce themselves. Ultimately this natural selection leads to bacteria that are strong enough to survive most antibiotics we have to offer. Bacterial evolution has caught up to human ingenuity and threatens to surpass it. These superbugs threaten to kill up to 10 million people per year by 2050, but antibiotics remain too valuable a resource to entirely replace. The only remaining option is to adapt with the times and develop evolving weaponry and treatment, harnessing man and nature to beat our old enemy. Bacteriophages are to a bacterium as a tiger is to a lamb. As the natural predator of bacteria, bacte...

Phage discovery gets its groove back with Phage DisCo Bacteriophage research has been all the rage, and for good reason; these bacteria killing viruses may be the solution to antibiotic resistance. Antibiotics are broad-acting drugs that kill every type of bacteria in their path. But this relief is short-lived. Bacterial pathogens can evolve to withstand antibiotics faster than the pharmaceutical industry can make them. With antibiotic resistance on the rise, it’s no wonder that bacteriophages are the newest viral sensation.   Unlike antibiotics, phage therapy offers a more precise approach to treat bacterial infections that is harder for evolution to evade. Bacteriophages – also known as phages – act as microscopic hitmen. To kill only their specific target, a phage recognizes a unique protein receptor found on bacteria cells’ surface. Phages that use different receptors are needed for phage therapy. Multiple phages with different targets are combined into a “phage cocktail” ...