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

European Research Council awards 1.5 million euros to study RNA bacteriophages, antibiotic resistance Picture taken from :  https://www.labmate-online.com/news/laboratory-research-news/126/breaking-news/european-research-council-awards-15-million-euros-to-study-rna-bacteriophages-and-antibiotic-resistance/65759 Professor Jens Hör of the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research, Würzburg, Germany has received a prestigious European Research Council Starting Grant worth 1.5 million euros. His project, ‘RIBO-PHAGE’, will investigate ribonucleic acid bacteriophages as potential therapeutic agents against multi-resistant bacteria and explore their molecular biology to advance infection research and antimicrobial therapies Infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria pose an increasingly serious threat to global health, and science continues to search for effective alternatives to conventional antibiotics. One promising avenue of discovery are bacteriophages – or simply...

Marie-Cécile Ploy: Dealing with Resistant Bacteria J u st over a year ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) published its first report on resistance to antimicrobials, which include antibiotics. It considered it a serious threat that could strike anyone, anywhere in the world. A danger that French research – particularly Inserm – has been studying for several years, and of which researcher Marie-Cécile Ploy is one of the spearheads. Marie-Cécile Ploy, microbiologist, head of  Resinfit  – Antimicrobials: Molecular Supports of Resistances and Therapeutic Innovations (unit 1092 Inserm/ Limoges University/Limoges University Hospital), in Limoges.  ©Inserm/François Guénet How is antibiotic resistance a critical global issue? Marie-Cécile Ploy:  Antibiotic resistance is a real problem – and one to be tackled with the One health approach, because it affects humans, animals and the environment. Bacteria have no geographical frontiers and few species boundaries. There...

Discovery of a novel phage defence mechanism in  Salmonella   highlights emerging challenges for phage therapy Phage therapy, the use of viruses that infect bacteria, is considered a promising strategy for the treatment of bacterial infections. However, it faces the challenge that bacteria can develop sophisticated defence mechanisms against phages. Researchers at the UAB have identified a new defence mechanism in  Salmonella  acquired through lateral gene transfer in the intestines of broiler chickens during oral phage therapy treatment. A  Salmonella  cell infected by the UAB_Phi20 bacteriophage. The black arrow points to the phage attached to the surface of the bacterial membrane, and the white arrow indicates one of the phage particles formed inside the cell. Researchers from the Molecular Microbiology Group at the Department of Genetics and Microbiology of the UAB, led by Dr Montserrat Llagostera, have published a pioneering study describing a new defe...

Drug Delivery Platform Could Usher Phage Therapeutics to the Clinic A biotech startup aims to revolutionize the use of phage therapeutics with a drug delivery platform enabling them to be used in real-world clinical settings. Paldara was founded after its young creator and CEO William Colton won his first pitch competition at Oklahoma State University (OSU) based on his studies using bacteriophages to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria.  Photo taken from :  https://www.paldara.com/ The research-turned-business venture is focused on a three-part system to effectively deliver and protect bacteriophages, including a specialized hydrogel coating that can be applied to medical devices like urinary catheters to provide localized, controlled release of the bacteria-infecting viruses over an extended period, says the now-26-year-old Colton. Currently, many phage therapeutics are administered intravenously although the infections being treated are typically not systemic.  Microe...

  “Applied science at its best” - Sir Richard Leese on our research into ‘phage therapy Picture taken from :  https://www.salford.ac.uk/news/applied-science-at-its-best-sir-richard-leese-on-our-research-into-phage-therapy  The University of Salford welcomed co-chair of Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership, Sir Richard Leese, to our Cockcroft building and Maker Space this week.  Sir Richard was shown around by Professor of Microbiology, Chloe James and her team of PhD students and given insight into our research into 'phage therapy' as treatment to tackle antimicrobial resistance. The day started with a look around the Cockcroft laboratories, where Professor James and her PhD students have been researching different 'phages' – some which form partnerships with the bacteria they infect, and others which can be developed and used for 'phage therapy'. Bacteriophages, or 'phages' are viruses that infect bacteria – they selectively target and kill ba...

AI Designs Viable Bacteriophage Genomes, Combats Antibiotic Resistance AI models, Evo 1 and Evo 2, have now generated functional bacteriophage genomes, demonstrating experimental validation of whole genomes designed by AI Cryo-electron microscopy structure of a viable bacteriophage designed by Evo. [Samuel King] DNA sequences contain the underlying instructions of life for all living organisms, but even the simplest microbial genomes are largely complex, with millions of DNA base pairs encoding the interplay of DNA, RNA, and proteins for cellular function at multiple scales, from individual pathways to whole genomes.   “Most biological functions are not achieved by any single gene,” Brian Hie, PhD, assistant professor of chemical engineering at Stanford University and innovation investigator at Arc Institute, told  GEN  when describing the motivation behind building genome foundation models for generative design. “If we want to engineer more complex functions, we’ll ...