bacteriophages

Bacteriophages are viruses that specifically target and infect bacteria. They attach to bacterial cells, inject their genome, and interfere with the bacteria's ability to function, halting bacterial infections. The bacteria become unable to reproduce and instead produce additional phages. Phages are highly selective in the bacterial strains they target, making them an attractive alternative to antibiotics, especially for treating multi-drug resistant infections. Their specificity allows them to kill pathogenic bacteria without affecting beneficial bacteria in the microbiome, reducing side effects and the risk of opportunistic infections. Bacteriophages have been used therapeutically since the early 20th century but were largely replaced by antibiotics after World War II in most parts of the world. However, due to increasing antibiotic resistance, interest in phage therapy has been revived in recent years.

Other names

phagebacterial virus噬菌体