Bacteriophage therapy for severe infections
Carola Venturini A B D , Aleksandra Petrovic Fabjian A and Ruby CY Lin A B CA Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, The Westmead Institute for Medical Research, Level 4, 176 Hawkesbury Road, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
B Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
C School of Medical Sciences, University of New South Wales, NSW 2052, Australia
D Tel: +61 2 8627 3415, Fax: +61 2 8627 3099, Email: carola.venturini@sydney.edu.au
Microbiology Australia 40(1) 20-23 https://doi.org/10.1071/MA19005
Published: 18 February 2019
Abstract
The rise of multiple antibiotic resistance in clinically relevant bacteria has created a global crisis with increasing burden on healthcare systems. The need to optimise alternative therapies to antibiotics, particularly in high risk nosocomial settings, is therefore immediate. Bacteriophages are specialised lethal viruses of bacteria, and an underused clinical resource for the treatment of severe infections refractory to antibiotics. Both the gaps in knowledge of bacteriophage biology, particularly the details of host-pathogen dynamic interactions, and legislative hurdles related to the regulation of natural microorganisms for therapy have delayed progress in bacteriophage clinical applications. At the Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR), in collaboration with Westmead Hospital (Western Sydney Local Health District, WSLHD) and the University of Sydney (USyd), we have been investigating rational design protocols for routine bacteriophage application in clinical practice and testing bacteriophage therapeutics on patients suffering from multidrug resistant (MDR) severe infections.
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