Unveiling Phage Therapy: A Battle Against Antibiotic Resistance

Unveiling Phage Therapy: A Battle Against Antibiotic Resistance

Unveiling Phage Therapy: A Battle Against Antibiotic Resistance Researchers worldwide are exploring phage therapy as a revolutionary response to the growing issue of antibiotic resistance. Phages, targeted viruses that attack bacteria, have shown potential in beating drug-resistant infections where traditional antibiotics have failed.A novel study highlights the Kiwa system, a unique bacterial defense mechanism that detects viral threats through…

How ancient viruses could help fight antibiotic resistance

Phages (red) attacking a bacterium (green). nobeastsofierce/Shutterstock.comIf bacteria had a list of things to fear, phages would be at the top. These viruses are built to find, infect and kill them – and they have been doing it for billions of years. Now that ancient battle is offering clues for how we might fight back against antibiotic-resistant infections. As more bacteria evolve to withstand our antibiotics, previously treatable infections…

Antimicrobial Resistance Strategies May Be Informed by Bacteria’s Kiwa Phage Defense System

Researchers at the University of Southampton have used advanced imaging techniques to uncover how bacteria use a mechanism called Kiwa to defend themselves against phage viruses. Phages are seen as a potentially promising alternatives to antibiotics. The results showed that the Kiwa defense mechanism senses phage attachment to the membrane, and builds a transmembrane complex that prevents infection by blocking replication of phage DNA and transc…