LOCUS BIOSCIENCES
https://www.locus-bio.com/ New investment by pharmaceutical companies, is gathering pace now that genetically modified phages can be patented. Locus Biosciences is a biotechnology company that develops CRISPR-engineered precision antibacterial products. Its CRISPR-Phage ("crPhage") platform combines the antibacterial power of CRISPR-Cas3 with the efficient, safe delivery of bacterial viruses called bacteriophage. It's a new kind of antibiotic made out of viruses that have been genetically modified using the gene-editing tool CRISPR and Johnson & Johnson is now in a partnership worth hundreds of millions with Locus Biosciences, a North Carolina-based company which specializes in using boutique phages to inject CRISPR-Cas3 into bacteria. CRISPR-Cas3 is often compared to Pac-Man: once inside the bacteria, it shreds the bacteria's DNA like so many blue ghosts, killing it. By selectively removing unwanted bacteria while leaving the many species of good bacteria intact, crPhage™ can address the growing set of diseases shown to be related to the human microbiome.
Later this year, Dr. Michael Priebe and his colleagues plan to start infusing cocktails containing billions of bacteriophages genetically modified with CRISPR into patients at six centers around the United States.
"If we're successful, this revolutionizes the treatment of infections," he adds. "This can be the game changer that takes us out of this arms race with the resistant bacteria and allows us to use a totally different mechanism to fight the pathogenic bacteria that are infecting us."
Locus' genetically modified phages help alleviate one of the challenges of phage therapy, which is that lytic phages do not always kill every bacteria. Locus can engineer the phages to have a more effective "depth of killing profile," helping to ensure that everything the phage hunts is killed.
There's also potential in using phages as biological, targeted syringes. "In theory, you can deliver all different kinds of enzymes that do all different kinds of things," Joseph Nixon, senior vice president of business development at Locus. . Nixon envisions phages being used to pinpoint cancer targets and — what he deems the "holy grail" - central nervous system targets. Theoretically, phages could be used to target bacteria in other ways, potentially increasing their pathogenicity instead of killing them. Luckily, that's unlikely, as there are more practical methods available for weaponizing bacteria, including CRISPR-Cas tools.
ARMATA PHARMACEUTICALS
https://www.armatapharma.com/ Armata Pharmaceuticals Announces Publication of Successful Adjunctive Phage Treatment in Cystic Fibrosis Patient
Armata Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE American: ARMP), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on precisely targeted bacteriophage therapeutics for antibiotic-resistant infections, today announced the publication of a paper appearing in the peer-reviewed journal Infection "Successful adjunctive use of bacteriophage therapy for treatment of multidrug‑resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in a cystic fibrosis patient,"
Saima Aslam, MD, MS, Associate Professor, Medical Director, Solid Organ Transplant Infectious Diseases, Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Public Health at the University of California, San Diego, principal investigator and co-author of the paper. "This successful outcome speaks to the great potential of phage-based therapeutics to address the growing threat of antibiotic resistance and provides very strong rationale for continued development."
"The publication of this successful treatment case study, with an Armata phage administered through our single-patient expanded access program, adds to the impressive and growing body of evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of our phage product candidates, and bacteriophage in general," said Todd R. Patrick, Chief Executive Officer of Armata.
"To solidify our position as a leader in the development of phage-based therapeutics, we are currently working with key opinion leaders to map out an efficient clinical strategy for both our Pseudomonas and Staphylococcus phage product candidates, and plan to file an IND later this year for our Staphylococcus phage candidate. Treatment of single patients through the expanded access program has been very helpful in demonstrating the promise of phage therapy. However, the reality is that supporting compassionate use cases limits our ability to focus our resources on formal clinical trials required for FDA approval to bring a potential solution to all patients suffering from drug-resistant bacterial infections. With the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance, it is extremely important that we take the necessary steps to perform rigorous clinical trials so we can move toward commercialization of alternatives to traditional antibiotics."
With a market capitalization of US$35m, Armata Pharmaceuticals is a small cap stock, so it might not be well known by many institutional investors. Armata's phage-based product candidates aim to address areas of significant unmet clinical need by targeting key antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Armata's lead product candidate, AP-SA01, is a Phase 1/2-ready asset that targets Staphylococcus aureus, including multidrug-resistant strains. In addition, Armata is also developing and advancing a broad pipeline of proprietary synthetic phage candidates, including a synthetic phage for Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Armata has also partnered with Merck to develop proprietary synthetic phage candidates designed to target an undisclosed infectious disease agent.
PHAGOMED
https://www.phagomed.com . NEWS https://www.phagomed.com/2019/09/17/phagomed-in-the-news-ii/
VIDEO
>Proactive Investors Interview with Alexander Belcredi
Published 8 January 2019. CEO Alexander Belcredi sat down with Christine Corrado with Proactive Investors at the 11th Annual BioTech Showcase in San Francisco. The privately-held biotech specializes in developing therapeutics uses for phage therapy, which uses lytic bacteriophages, a virus that infects bacteria, to treat multidrug resistant bacterial infections.
VIDEO
>How a long forgotten virus could help us solve the antibiotics crisis.
November 2018: Ted Talk by Alexander Belcredi, CEO PhagoMed Biopharma. He spent nine years at BCG where he was part of the global health care team, focusing on pharma and medtech. He became acutely aware of the urgent need to develop alternatives to antibiotics and was fascinated by the role that phage therapy can play. In 2017, he co-founded PhagoMed Biopharma GmbH, as a biotech company to develop phage-based pharmaceuticals to treat bacterial infections.
PHAGEGUARD
https://phageguard.com/
Micreos offer innovative application solutions that have no effect on the taste, texture, appearance or aroma of food products. The company has a GMP-quality research, development and quality control are conducted at our Phage Technology & Production Centres in The Netherlands.
https://www.staphefekt.com/en/ https://phageguard.com/contact/
Staphefekt™, developed by Micreos , is the world's first endolysin available for human use on intact skin, and it is the world's first product that selectively kills Staphylococcus aureus including MRSA. Staphefekt™ specifically targets Staphylococcus aureus, including strains that are resistant to antibiotics such as MRSA. Thanks to its bacterial specificity it leaves beneficial bacteria unharmed, which is especially important in case of longer term use. Staphefekt XDR.300 is an aseptic liquid solution. Micreos has also developed a series of creams and gels containing Staphefekt, for people with skin conditions with an infectious component, like acne, eczema, rosacea and skin irritation. These are available under the Gladskin brand. Endolysins are bacteria-killing enzymes that originate from bacteriophages (phages), the natural enemy of bacteria. Both have been around for billions of years. The Staphefekt endolysin exhibits two additional useful characteristics to combat bacterial infections: rapid killing of bacteria and very limited likelihood of emerging resistance.
PROTEON PHARMACEUTICALS
Microbiome Health Sciences…For Life https://www.proteonpharma.com/ precision biology for microbiome protection to improve animal and human health, increasing environmental sustainability and eliminating the unnecessary use of antibiotics. Proteon uses bacteriophages as the foundation for preventing and eradicating infectious diseases in animals, human and plants. Bacteriophages are naturally occurring organisms in the microbiome and they offer an exciting alternative to antibiotics in combating pathogenic bacteria including antibiotic resistant microbes (AMR). PROTEON's therapeutic products are safe for humans, animals and plants and are based on environmentally sustainable methods and approaches.
The company has developed a unique phage-platform using proprietary tools and expertise in microbiology, DNA sequencing and bioinformatics which enables continued discovery of new solutions for a wide variety of industries and applications. Its first product, BAFASAL® , is a feed additive that prevents and eliminates salmonella on the poultry farm. Ptoteon's first aquaculture product, BAFADOR®, a feed additive, prevents and eliminates opportunistic infections in the aquaculture pen while enhancing immune function. All products are designed so that in addition to their functional benefits they enhance on-farm productivity and increase the environmental sustainability of livestock production.
PHAGELUX
www.phagelux.com
The Phagelux mission is to be a leading global anti-infectives company by utilizing various biological solutions to address bacterial problems across multiple industries, particularly targeting antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria. The AgriPhage™ product line is full of EPA registered biopesticides that prevent and control harmful bacteria on tomato and pepper plants, apple and pear trees, and citrus trees. China is the largest grower and exporter of tomatoes and peppers.
AgriPhage : Biological control for bacterial spot and bacterial speck on tomatoes and peppers - Focusing on Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria and Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato.
PHERECYDES PHARMA
https://www.pherecydes-pharma.com/ Pherecydes Pharma and BIOASTER join forces for the PhagUTI project Romainville and Lyon, France, July 16, 2019
In order to explore the use of phage therapy to treat complicated urinary tract infections, Pherecydes Pharma and BIOASTER , the French Technology Research Institute (TRI) for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, announced the signing of a collaboration agreement.
Pherecydes Pharma BIOASTER
Pherecydes Pharma and BIOASTER, the French Technology Research Institute (TRI) for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, announced the signing of a collaboration agreement. The PhagUTI
In the last few decades, antibiotics have turned life-threatening diseases into short-term disorders and have had a major positive impact on public health and the global economy. Today, however, this progress is under serious threat due to the rapidly increasing emergence of antibiotic resistance. Worldwide, an estimated 700,000 resistant infections occur in hospitals annually. A recently published report forecasts that this could lead to 10 million deaths per year by 2050 and a cumulative cost over $100 trillion. Moreover, the widespread resistance to antibiotics threatens the most common medical and surgical procedures in modern medicine that it would no longer be possible to perform. The increasing threat of resistance to existing antibiotics has been the major driver in the renewed interest in bacteriophages treatment; phages being the natural predators of bacteria.
"This project will be an important step forward for phage therapy and a new hope for patients," commented Guy-Charles Fanneau de la Horie, CEO of Pherecydes Pharma. "We are looking forward to working with BIOASTER on this fascinating project," he added.
"This collaborative program illustrates BIOASTER's ambition very well; bringing together partners' complementary expertise for accelerating innovation towards new effective solutions for the patients," said Nathalie Garçon, CEO & CSO of BIOASTER. "We are very proud to be part of this exciting project with Pherecydes that will generate new avenues for alternative treatments of multi-drug resistant bacterial infections."
PhagoPROD, one of the first GMP manufacturing suites of bacteriophages in Europe
Since November 1st 2018, Pherecydes is benefiting from substantial financial support (€ 2.4 million) to set up a bacteriophage pharmaceutical production unit. The PhagoPROD project (ID SEP-210493268) supported by a grant from the SME-Instrument (H2020 EIC-SME INSTRUMENT-2-2018-2020) of the European Commission aims at setting-up, optimizing and scaling-up our GMP manufacturing and GLP diagnostic (Phagogram) processes. The ultimate goal of PhagoPROD is to achieve large-scale commercialization and distribution of Pherecydes Pharma bacteriophages on the European Community territory.
PhagoPROD is addressing all existing technical, industrial and regulatory hurdles to reach the following milestones:
Be granted the "pharmaceutical" company status by the French medicinal regulatory agency (ANSM) for the GMP manufacturing site located in Nantes (France);
Become an authorized medical biology laboratory to deliver phagogram results obtained under GLP standards.
PhagoPROD will last 24 months and require hiring new competencies, invest in new equipment and acquire regulatory expertise to reach the outcomes. An overall budget of €3,7 million is planned including the €2.5 million European Commission grant (65% coverage). The company funds raised in December 2017 allow Pherecydes to self-finance the remaining 35%.
The PhagoPROD project has been especially selected by the European Commission to illustrate the "Health" topic of its "InvestEU" communication campaign.
FIXED-PHAGE
https://www.fixed-phage.com/ The technologies developed by Fixed Phage are platform technologies and have the ability to address a wide range of applications in society. This flexibility derives from the underpinning immobilisation technology, which can coat a diverse range of substrates with phages, thereby giving the base substrate inherent anti-microbial properties. The patented immobilisation technology can allow fixing phages onto substrates as diverse as plastic sheets and powders.
Dr Jason Clark and his team at Fixed-Phage work in a custom designed laboratory and support infrastructure facilities located at the prestigious West of Scotland Science Park. Its in-house abilities include all work required to identify, manufacture and work with bacteriophage. Fixed Phage continually invests in innovation and its team presents at conferences and exhibitions around the world.
With the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance, new treatments are needed. Phages offer one viable alternative but as large biological molecules they are sensitive to environmental stresses. The Fixed Phage technology uses a high-voltage electrical discharge to "immobilise" (irreversibly covalently attach) phages to almost any surface. This immobilisation not only retains phages at sites where they can have the maximum antibacterial effect but also has a stabilising effect, extending the viability of phages at ambient temperatures from weeks to years. The Fixed Phage technology is protected by a suite of granted and pending patents in all important global marketplaces.
The Fixed Phage technology uses a high-voltage electrical discharge to "immobilise" (irreversibly covalently attach) phages to almost any surface. This immobilisation not only retains phages at sites where they can have the maximum antibacterial effect but also has a stabilising effect, extending the viability of phages at ambient temperatures from weeks to years.
The Fixed Phage technology is cheap and clean to apply; it uses only electricity and no other chemicals or bonding agents and surfaces can be activated in a fraction of a second. Almost any surface can be treated, meaning the technology is a platform that can be used in to target a wide range of bacterial problems. Currently, the company is focussing on three key areas: aquaculture, animal feed and food packing. However, the technology also has applications in the fields of agriculture, human health and other areas
INTRALYTIX INC
http://www.intralytix.com/
Intralytix's phage technology is based on the philosophy that naturally-occurring bacteriophages provide one of the safest and most environmentally-friendly, targeted approaches for dealing with bacterial infections in a variety of settings. Phages are "Nature's way" of controlling bacteria on this planet, and they have played and continue to play a critical role in maintaining (via a well-balanced predator-prey relationship) microbial balance in every ecosystem where bacteria are present. Thus, Intralytix's philosophy is to use this natural approach to control pathogenic bacteria in limited, specific settings where those bacteria may cause human illness or other problems.
Intralytix's core phage technology stipulates construction of natural, safe, and effective phage preparations from a library of well-characterized bacteriophages isolated from the environment. After they are in Intralytix's phage collection, the phages are not genetically engineered or altered in any way. However, they are rigorously characterized and carefully selected to produce phage cocktails optimal for specific applications. At the present time, Intralytix's library of lytic bacteriophages is one of the largest and best characterized in the world. Also, it is continuously being updated with new phages, in order to include bacteriophages lytic against additional bacterial pathogens or bacterial strains of particular concern in specific geographic locations or in specific food processing or clinical settings.
Intralytix was the first company in the world to receive FDA-approval for a phage-based product for food safety applications. To learn more about Intralytix, Inc. or its products please visit www.intralytix.com .
For an excellent History of Bacteriophages visit http://www.intralytix.com/index.php?page=hist
VIDEO
Bacteriophage Expert Dr. Alexander Sulakvelidze
Published 21 August 2015.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SALlGDkfkL4
Interview with A Sulakvelidzehttp://www.tid-site.com/2016/34-news/alerts/518-dr-alexander-sulakvelidze-editor-and-chief-of-bacteriophage-will-give-a-talk-during-phage-therapy-2016
ADAPTIVE PHAGE THERAPEUTICS
http://www.aphage.com/
In 2016 this approach achieved a significant milestone with the successful rescue of Tom Patterson, a critically ill A. baumannii infected patient. Tom Patterson's case was immediately followed by numerous additional patient cases. In response for the need to translate the Navy's phage research into a commercially available therapy, Adaptive Phage Therapeutics (APT) was founded by Dr. Merril and his son Greg Merril. The company acquired world-wide exclusive rights to BDRD's phage technology and began efforts to optimize precision phage therapy for rapid, cost effective, clinical adoption.
Adaptive Phage Therapeutic's (APT's) approach creates the unique capability of adapting to the emergence of future antibiotic-resistant superbugs. It's PhageBank's precision targeted, genomically screened, and highly purified phage collection is dynamically expanding in response to the emergence of new strains of bacterial superbugs.
It is now known that a single phage strain can generally infect only a single bacterial strain. Thus, in contrast to antibiotics which are effective against many different organisms, a purified phage strain is limited, but highly effective, against the strain of bacteria it can lyse. If bacterial resistance emerges in response to the initial phage administration, APT is able to rapidly identify a new phage that is effective against the mutated strain. This process can be continued until the bacterial infection is cured. No conventional antibiotics can be developed to deal with bacterial resistance with such rapidity.
APT's methodology was previously not possible as it required breakthroughs in several areas including: genomics, virus purification, high-throughput automated phage-bacteria matching technology (HRQT™), and years of phage collection by the BIological Defense Research Directorate of the US Department of Defense.
BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM
https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.co.uk | https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/
Boehringer Ingelheim concentrate on developing innovative therapies that can extend patients' lives. In 2017, we spent around €3.1 billion on research and development, with three sites for human health and a network of more than 20 sites for animal health. The company believes that the free exchange of scientific information is the basis for innovation in medicine, especially the exchange of scientific results from human, interventional, and non-interventional clinical studies . As a research-driven pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim supports this principle by seeking publication of the scientific results from all it's studies in peer reviewed journals and at scientific meetings, regardless of study outcome.
BIOMX
http://www.biomx.com/
The Company's platforms use computational and synthetic biology and cutting-edge research from Profs. Rotem Sorek, Ph.D., Eran Elinav, M.D., Ph.D., and Eran Segal, Ph.D., of The Weizmann Institute of Science; and Professor Timothy K. Lu, M.D., Ph.D., of The Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
PHICO THERAPEUTICS
http://www.phicotx.co.uk/#home
SASPs bind to all bacterial DNA, irrespective of the sequence of that DNA. Spontaneous mutations in DNA, or the import of new DNA that gives new characteristics to the bacterial cell, are key ways in which bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics. Neither of these strategies affects the ability of SASP to bind to and inactivate bacterial DNA.
This approach has the potential to provide a number of significant advantages over traditional antibiotics:
The unique mode of action of SASP makes it unlikely the bacteria will be able to develop resistance to this anti-bacterial protein
SASPject technology can be used to target any selected bacteria, individual or multiple bacterial species or genera, including those that are multi-antibiotic resistant.
Unlike conventional antibiotics, SASPject has no effect on any bacteria other than those at which it is targeted. Normal skin and gut bacteria ("good bacteria") are unharmed.
SASPject target specificity prevents the release of toxins and other inflammatory cell components from non-target bacteria thus potentially minimising associated side effects.
SASPject has the potential to limit the further spread of antibiotic resistance genes and to shrink the current antibiotic resistance pool
SASPject™ PT3 is being developed against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These infections can involve any part of the human body, but most commonly cause urinary tract, lung, bloodstream, wound/burn, and intra-abdominal infections. P. aeruginosa is responsible for a number of hospital-acquired infections with its incidence in intensive care units having risen sharply and its incidence almost doubling between the mid 1970's and early 2000's. The increasing incidence of P. aeruginosa of strains showing multi-drug resistance against commonly used first-line antibiotics has resulted in the U.S. CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) classifying P. aeruginosa as a serious threat to human health. The PT3 project has been supported by Innovate UK.
SASPject™ PT4 and SASPject™ PT5 are being developed for systemic (intravenous) use against both Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli respectively. These bacteria cause a wide range of infections, which can be serious or life threatening as isolates which are resistant to almost all conventional antibiotics continue to spread around the globe, resulting in very poor treatment outcomes. PT4 and PT5 projects are supported by a Wellcome Translation Award.
SASPject™ PT1.2 targets Staphylococcus aureus, including MRSA. MRSA infections are now a global problem in hospitals, with thousands of fatalities recorded as a result of their presence, and their control is vital to many national health systems. SASPject™ PT1.2 will be used for the intra-nasal decolonisation of the bacteria. A Phase I clinical trial has been successfully completed.
AmpliPhi Biosciences
www.ampliphibio.com ."A post-antibiotic era means, in effect, an end to modern medicine as we know it. Things as common as strep throat or a child's scratched knee could once again kill." Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO's Director General, 2014.
Ampliphibio believe that phage therapeutics are uniquely positioned to address the serious threat of antibiotic-resistance. They can be precisely targeted to kill select bacteria, have a mechanism of action distinct from those of antibiotics, can penetrate and disrupt biofilms (a common bacterial defense mechanism against antibiotics), are potentially synergistic with antibiotics, and have been shown to restore antibiotic sensitivity to drug-resistant bacteria. Their lead development programs target the World Health Organization's (WHO's) "Priority Pathogens". https://www.ampliphibio.com/science/knowledge-library/
AmpliPhi Biosciences and C3J Therapeutics
14-May-2019 By Maggie Lynch, AmpliPhi Biosciences and C3J Therapeutics merge to focus on the development of phage-based therapeutic candidates for antibiotic resistance. CLICK HERE FOR FULL STORY
AmpliPhi collaborates with UCSD to help a 65 yr-old heart patient, Joel Grimwood, who was in dire need. Joel had been suffering from multiple serious infections for 3 years.
VIDEO
>University of Leicester Announce a potential for phage treatment of C-diff infection
Published on 15 June 2015. A specialist team of scientists, including Dr Martha Clokie, from the University of Leicester has isolated viruses that eat bacteria – called phages - to specifically target the highly infectious hospital superbug Clostridium difficile (C. diff). Now an exciting new collaboration between the University of Leicester, the University of Glasgow and AmpliPhi Biosciences Corporation could lead to the use of bacteriophages for treating the superbug Clostridium difficile infections. Dr Clokie has spent time at the Elieva Institute of bacteriophages, Georgia.
Full story
A specialist team of scientists from the University of Leicester has isolated viruses that eat bacteria – called phages - to specifically target the highly infectious hospital superbug Clostridium difficile (C. diff).
Now an exciting new collaboration between the University of Leicester, the University of Glasgow and AmpliPhi Biosciences Corporation could lead to the use of bacteriophages for treating the superbug Clostridium difficile infections. Dr Martha Clokie, from the University of Leicester's Department of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, has been investigating an alternative approach to antibiotics, which utilizes naturally occurring viruses called bacteriophages, meaning 'eaters of bacteria'. The work has predominantly been funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC).
Dr Clokie said: "Ever since the discovery of the first antibiotic, penicillin, antibiotics have been heralded as the 'silver bullets' of medicine. They have saved countless lives and impacted on the well-being of humanity. "But less than a century following their discovery, the future impact of antibiotics is dwindling at a pace that no one anticipated, with more and more bacteria outsmarting and 'out-evolving' these miracle drugs. This has re-energised the search for new treatments.
"One alternative to antibiotics is bacteriophages, known as phages, which unlike antibiotics, are specific in what they kill and will generally only infect one particular species, or even strain, of bacteria - referred to as the 'host'. Following attachment to their hosts, they inject their DNA into the bacterium, which then replicates many times over, ultimately causing the bacterial cell to burst open. The phages released from the dead bacterium can then infect other host cells."
Dr. Clokie and her team have achieved the remarkable feat of isolating and characterising the largest known set of distinct C. diff phages that infect clinically relevant strains of C. diff. Of these, a specific mixture of phages have been proved, through extensive laboratory testing, to be effective against 90% of the most clinically relevant C. diff strains currently seen in the U.K.
As a testament to their therapeutic potential, these phages, that are the subject of a patent application, have been licensed by AmpliPhi Biosciences Corporation - a US-based biopharmaceutical company and pioneers in developing phage-based therapeutics. AmpliPhi have already made progress in developing phages targeted against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a pathogen that causes acute, life-threatening lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. They were also the first biopharmaceutical company to demonstrate the effectiveness of Pseudomonas phages in controlled and regulated human clinical trials.
As part of this exciting collaboration, AmpliPhi are funding further development and testing of C. diff phages developed by Dr. Clokie. The goal is to have a phage mixture ready to go into phase 1 and 2 clinical trials. This will involve optimising phage-preparations for maximum efficacy against C. diff infections from around the globe and establishing production, storage and delivery systems for the phage mixture. Evaluations of the efficacy of bacteriophage therapy and optimisation of dosing regimes will be carried out in collaboration with the University of Glasgow, in the laboratory of Dr Gill Douce.
Dr Clokie said: "C. diff bacteria primarily affect our digestive system. Whilst relatively innocuous in individuals with a healthy gut flora, they pose a serious threat when our natural digestive environment is disrupted or depleted, such as after chronic antibiotic use. In such individuals, C. diff infections can cause severe diarrhoea, vomiting and dehydration. Collectively, these symptoms can prove life threatening, particularly in elderly patients. In addition to killing the C. diff bacteria, antibiotics also destroy the 'good' gut bacteria, in turn increasing the potential for relapse or new infections. Consequently, C. diff infections pose a substantial healthcare burden for the NHS and a significant drain on its resources.
"The key advantage of using phages over antibiotics lies in their specificity. A phage will infect and kill only a specific strain/species of bacteria. This is particularly important when treating conditions like C. diff infections, where maintenance of the natural balance of gut bacteria greatly reduces the chance of relapse."
