James Crowley: For a growing number of bacterial pathogens, the success rate of antibiotics is iffy
James Crowley, Professor of Medicine Emeritus at Brown University, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has made it so that, for a growing number of bacterial pathogens, the success rate of antibiotics is iffy, at best. More than 1.2 million people died as a direct result of AMR bacterial infections in 2019.
Phage therapy involves using phages to treat bacterial infections. Phages are ubiquitous viruses found everywhere. From the soil to our guts, there are thousands of different types.
In contrast to many antibiotics, which obliterate harmful bacteria, while simultaneously decimating the microbiota (thus triggering a new set of problems), each phage has evolved to more narrowly target bacterial strains or species.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently awarded $2.5 million to 12 institutes around the world to study phage therapy. Clinical trials are also underway, including a multi-center Phase 1b/2 trial assessing the microbiological activity of a single dose of phage therapy in cystic fibrosis patients chronically colonized with P. aeruginosa.
Scientists are also studying whether they can optimize phage ‘lifestyle’ to create more effective therapies. Locus, for instance, is developing phage therapeutics that use CRISPR-Cas3 technology.
The phages deliver CRISPR-Cas3 to their bacterial host, which irreparably shreds the bacterial DNA.”
More posts featuring James Crowley.
James P. Crowley is a Professor of Medicine Emeritus at Brown University and serves as a volunteer physician at the Rhode Island Free Clinic. He has held leadership positions in the medical community, including past President of the Rhode Island Medical Society and the last President of The Providence Medical Association.
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