Phage therapy did not flourish in Western countries, due to the prominent role played by antibiotics but both bacteriophages and the endolysins they produce have recently acquired prominence in the West, as alternative or combined therapy to treat antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Phages (bacteriophages) are viruses that specifically kill bacteria, which were discovered a hundred years ago.

In the current conjuncture, and taking into account the slow pace of discovery and/or development of new antibiotics, it is time to revive the concept of phage therapy, originally proposed by d’Herelle in the 1930s. The current situation is critical, as the extent of bacterial resistance is such that many diseases can no longer be effectively treated with the antibiotics available, with the consequent risk of returning to the conditions experienced during the “pre-antibiotic era”. These multi-resistance bacteria include, not only hospital strains, but also microorganisms representing important human and animal pathogens, as well as those caused by plant diseases. In fact, these pathogenic bacteria often display multi-resistance to the antibiotics commonly used to treat the infections they produce.

However, the genesis of spontaneous bacterial mutants, together with the overuse and misuse of these compounds, resulted in the emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens.

Since their introduction, at the beginning of the 20th century, antibiotics were regarded as “magic-bullets”, a term coined by Paul Ehrlich, and, for several decades, considered as the universal panacea to combat pathogenic and/or undesirable bacteria.

Vimr lab phage