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Bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, have long interested scientists as a potential therapy for bacterial infections. Today, in the journal Nature Medicine, scientists report the first clinical use of genetically-engineered bacteriophages to treat an antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection:
While the success provides a nice proof of principle, only one individual has been treated so far, so more work is needed to establish the safety and efficacy of the treatment. Furthermore, additional challenges remain in the development of bacteriophage therapy, including the fact that bacteriophages are often specific to only one species or subspecies of bacteria as opposed to antibiotic drugs which can often treat a wider swath of bacteria. However, given the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria and the difficulties developing new antibiotic drugs, the continued development of bacteriophage therapy is promising.
Citation to the paper discussed: Dedrick et al. Engineered bacteriophages for treatment of a patient with a disseminated drug-resistant Mycobacterium abscessus. Nat Med 25: 730 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-019-0437-z
Abstract:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health...help-save-a-patient-with-a-superbug-infectionFor the first time, scientists have used genetically modified viruses to treat a patient fighting an antibiotic-resistant infection.
Isabelle Carnell-Holdaway, 17, began the experimental treatment after doctors lost all hope. She was struggling with a life-threatening infection after a lung transplant. With the new treatment, she has not been completely cured. But the Faversham, England, teenager has recovered so much that she has resumed a near-normal life.
"I think it's amazing," Carnell-Holdaway says. "It kind of shows that there is completely no limit to what they can come up with really."
While the success provides a nice proof of principle, only one individual has been treated so far, so more work is needed to establish the safety and efficacy of the treatment. Furthermore, additional challenges remain in the development of bacteriophage therapy, including the fact that bacteriophages are often specific to only one species or subspecies of bacteria as opposed to antibiotic drugs which can often treat a wider swath of bacteria. However, given the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria and the difficulties developing new antibiotic drugs, the continued development of bacteriophage therapy is promising.
Citation to the paper discussed: Dedrick et al. Engineered bacteriophages for treatment of a patient with a disseminated drug-resistant Mycobacterium abscessus. Nat Med 25: 730 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-019-0437-z
Abstract:
A 15-year-old patient with cystic fibrosis with a disseminated Mycobacterium abscessus infection was treated with a three-phage cocktail following bilateral lung transplantation. Effective lytic phage derivatives that efficiently kill the infectious M. abscessus strain were developed by genome engineering and forward genetics. Intravenous phage treatment was well tolerated and associated with objective clinical improvement, including sternal wound closure, improved liver function, and substantial resolution of infected skin nodules.