The Potential of Phage Therapy against the Emerging Opportunistic Pathogen
Stenotrophomonas maltophilia.
Viruses 2021;
13:v13061057. [PMID:
34204897 PMCID:
PMC8228603 DOI:
10.3390/v13061057]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Revised: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The isolation and characterization of bacteriophages for the treatment of infections caused by the multidrug resistant pathogen Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is imperative as nosocomial and community-acquired infections are rapidly increasing in prevalence. This increase is largely due to the numerous virulence factors and antimicrobial resistance genes encoded by this bacterium. Research on S. maltophilia phages to date has focused on the isolation and in vitro characterization of novel phages, often including genomic characterization, from the environment or by induction from bacterial strains. This review summarizes the clinical significance, virulence factors, and antimicrobial resistance mechanisms of S. maltophilia, as well as all phages isolated and characterized to date and strategies for their use. We further address the limited in vivo phage therapy studies conducted against this bacterium and discuss the future research needed to spearhead phages as an alternative treatment option against multidrug resistant S. maltophilia.
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