Our researchers discover use for phages in fighting Clostridium difficile
A specialist team of scientists from our Department of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation has isolated viruses that eat bacteria – called phages – to specifically target the highly infectious hospital superbug Clostridium difficile (C. diff).
Since the discovery of the first antibiotic – penicillin – antibiotics have been heralded as the ‘silver bullets’ of medicine. They have saved countless lives and impacted on the well-being of humanity.
But less than a century following their discovery, the future impact of antibiotics is dwindling at a pace that no one anticipated, with more and more bacteria out-smarting and ‘out-evolving’ these miracle drugs. This has re-energised the search for new treatments, such as phages.
The key advantage of using phages over antibiotics lies in their specificity. A phage will infect and kill only a specific strain/species of bacteria. This is particularly important when treating conditions like C. diff infections.
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Superbugs
- Monash University-led Project Bioprospecting Viruses That Can Kill Deadly Superbugs
In a modern take on the Victorian gold rush, a Monash University-led project is successfully ‘bioprospecting’ for viruses known as phages that can kill deadly superbugs.The Monash Biomedicine ...
- How researchers used AI to find an antibiotic against a superbug
Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in response to the use of these medicines. (Representational, via Pixabay) In a major breakthrough for the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the ...
- Superbugs will struggle to evolve resistance to unusual new antibiotic
A much-needed new kind of antibiotic can kill bacteria such as MRSA and works in a way that makes it extremely difficult for resistance to evolve ...
- Millions of people are battling superbugs. What happens when the drugs don’t work?
They could wipe 20 years off average life expectancy and rock the foundations of modern medicine. What are superbugs? What can we do about them?
- Duke doctor: Superbugs are the next pandemic. What the US must do to combat them.
By Dr. Vance Fowler Superbugs kill an estimated 700,000 people worldwide each year. A Duke University infectious disease specialist says one promising policy solution is the PASTEUR Act ...
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Superbugs
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Go deeper with Bing News on:
Phages
- Monash University-led Project Bioprospecting Viruses That Can Kill Deadly Superbugs
In a modern take on the Victorian gold rush, a Monash University-led project is successfully ‘bioprospecting’ for viruses known as phages that can kill deadly superbugs.The Monash Biomedicine ...
- Phage Cocktails and the Future of Phage Therapy
Viruses of bacteria, known as bacteriophages or phages, were discovered nearly 100 years ago. Their potential as antibacterial agents was appreciated almost immediately, with the first 'phage ...
- Taming T4: Artificial Viral Vectors Deliver Big Payloads into Human Cells
But having a mere eight-person lab (four post-docs, two graduate students, and two research technicians) hasn’t deterred Rao from pursuing his goal of using phages to transform gene therapies ...
- Microplastics are everywhere. What does that mean for our immune systems?
Tiny particles of plastic turn up in our drinking water, blood and even regions of the Earth thought to be pristine—so it’s vital we learn what they’re doing to us.
- Targeting Phage Therapy World Conference 2023: 73 communications will be presented this week in Paris, France
The 6th World Conference on Targeting Phage Therapy 2023 which will be held in Paris on June 1-2 will welcome more than 70 communications (major, short and poster presentations), and gather more than ...
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Phages
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