Inhibitory Effects of Bacteriophage Preparations on Adenoviral Replication

Clinical and experimental bacteriophage studies: Recommendations for possible approaches for standing against SARS-CoV-2

In 2019, the world faced a serious health challenge, the rapid spreading of a life-threatening viral pneumonia, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by a betacoronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). As of January 2022 WHO statistics shows more than 5.6 million death and about 350 million infection by SARS-CoV-2. One of the life threatening aspects of COVID-19 is secondary infections and reduced efficacy of antibiotics against them. Since the beginning of COVID-19 many researches have been done on identification, treatment, and vaccine development. Bacterial viruses (bacteriophages) could offer novel approaches to detect, treat and control COVID-19. Phage therapy and in particular using phage cocktails can be used to control or eliminate the bacterial pathogen as an alternative or complementary therapeutic agent. At the same time, phage interaction with the host immune system can regulate the inflammatory response. In addition, phage display and engineered synthetic phages can be utilized to develop new vaccines and antibodies, stimulate the immune system, and elicit a rapid and well-appropriate defense response. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 new variants like delta and omicron has proved the urgent need for precise, efficient and novel approaches for vaccine development and virus detection techniques in which bacteriophages may be one of the plausible solutions. Therefore, phages with similar morphology and/or genetic content to that of coronaviruses can be used for ecological and epidemiological modeling of SARS-CoV-2 behavior and future generations of coronavirus, and in general new viral pathogens. This article is a comprehensive review/perspective of potential applications of bacteriophages in the fight against the present pandemic and the post-COVID era.

Antiviral effect of a bacteriophage on murine norovirus replication via modulation of the innate immune response

Bacteriophages (phages) are viruses of bacteria. Despite the growing progress in research on phage interactions with eukaryotic cells, our understanding of the roles of phages and their potential implications remains incomplete. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of the Staphylococcus aureus phage vB_SauM_JS25 on murine norovirus (MNV) replication. Experiments were performed using the RAW 264.7 cell line. After phage treatment, MNV multiplication was significantly inhibited, as indicated by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis, western blotting, the 50% tissue culture infectious dose and immunofluorescence. Furthermore, we revealed transcriptional changes in phage/MNV co-incubated RAW 264.7 cells through RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and bioinformatic analysis. Our subsequent analyses revealed that the innate immune response might play an important role in restriction of MNV replication, such as the cellular response to IFN-γ and response to IFN-γ. Additionally, gene expression of IL-10, Arg-1, Ccl22, GBP2, GBP3, GBP5, and GBP7 was increased significantly, which indicated a strong correlation between RT-qPCR and RNA-seq results. Furthermore, phage treatment activated guanylate binding proteins (GBPs), as revealed by RT-qPCR analysis, western blotting, and confocal microscopy. Taken together, these data suggest that the phage affects the innate response, such as the IFN-inducible GTPases and GBPs, and therefore exerts an antiviral effect in vitro. Collectively, our findings provide insights into the interactions of immune cells and phages, which establish phage-based antiviral effects.

Rekindling of a Masterful Precedent; Bacteriophage: Reappraisal and Future Pursuits

Antibiotic resistance is exuberantly becoming a deleterious health problem world-wide. Seeking innovative approaches is necessary in order to circumvent such a hazard. An unconventional fill-in to antibiotics is bacteriophage. Bacteriophages are viruses capable of pervading bacterial cells and disrupting their natural activity, ultimately resulting in their defeat. In this article, we will run-through the historical record of bacteriophage and its correlation with bacteria. We will also delineate the potential of bacteriophage as a therapeutic antibacterial agent, its supremacy over antibiotics in multiple aspects and the challenges that could arise on the way to its utilization in reality. Pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics and genetic engineering of bacteriophages and its proteins will be briefly discussed as well. In addition, we will highlight some of the in-use applications of bacteriophages, and set an outlook for their future ones. We will also overview some of the miscellaneous abilities of these tiny viruses in several fields other than the clinical one. This is an attempt to encourage tackling a long-forgotten hive. Perhaps, one day, the smallest of the creatures would be of the greatest help.

Sepsis, Phages, and COVID-19

Phage therapy has emerged as a potential novel treatment of sepsis for which no decisive progress has been achieved thus far. Obviously, phages can help eradicate local bacterial infection and bacteremia that may occur in a syndrome. For example, phages may be helpful in correcting excessive inflammatory responses and aberrant immunity that occur in sepsis. Data from animal studies strongly suggest that phages may indeed be an efficient means of therapy for experimentally induced sepsis. In recent years, a number of reports have appeared describing the successful treatment of patients with sepsis. Moreover, novel data on the anti-viral potential of phages may be interpreted as suggesting that phages could be used as an adjunct therapy in severe COVID-19. Thus, clinical trials assessing the value of phage therapy in sepsis, including viral sepsis, are urgently needed.