Rohde Christine
Abteilung Bioressourcen für Bioökonomie und Gesundheitsforschung, Leibniz-Institut DSMZ - Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH, Inhoffenstr. 7B, 38124, Braunschweig, Deutschland.
Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz. 2025 May 2. doi: 10.1007/s00103-025-04051-3.
Phages (bacteriophages) are viruses that specifically infect and kill bacteria. They are very abundant in nature, playing a highly relevant role in microbial ecosystems. In medicine, they are investigated as a potential alternative or supplement to antibiotics and can be used to treat wound, urinary tract and lung infections, for example. Single phages or so-called "phage cocktails" are applied.This overview article on basic knowledge of phages sheds light on well-known keywords from classical knowledge of phage biology and on state-of-the-art research focuses. Mechanisms of phage activity are presented as a basis for therapeutic application. Particularly, the phage-host interaction, lysis mechanisms, phage morphologies and specific methods for visualisation are discussed. Being part of the human microbiome, phages contribute to immune defence, especially in the mucosa. Temperate phages that are able to reside in bacterial genomes as prophages and therefore not suitable for therapy use as well as the CrAss phages (Crassvirales) and Lak megaphages discovered in recent years are also introduced. Further topics are bacterial phage defence, phage resistance and phage-antibiotic synergies. An outlook on future research is given, emphasising the importance of a coordinated collection of scientific results.Phages should not replace antibiotics, but they can even improve their efficiency. Currently, the licensing processes for phage therapy are still challenging. However, trust in phage preparations must be based on quality, which has to be guaranteed by harmonised standards.
噬菌体是一类能够特异性感染并杀死细菌的病毒。它们在自然界中极为丰富，在微生物生态系统中发挥着至关重要的作用。在医学领域，噬菌体作为抗生素的潜在替代品或补充剂受到研究，例如可用于治疗伤口感染、尿路感染和肺部感染等。可应用单一噬菌体或所谓的“噬菌体鸡尾酒”。这篇关于噬菌体基础知识的综述文章阐述了噬菌体生物学经典知识中的知名关键词以及当前的前沿研究重点。介绍了噬菌体活性机制作为治疗应用的基础。特别讨论了噬菌体 - 宿主相互作用、裂解机制、噬菌体形态以及可视化的具体方法。作为人类微生物组的一部分，噬菌体有助于免疫防御，尤其是在黏膜部位。还介绍了能够以原噬菌体形式存在于细菌基因组中因而不适合用于治疗的温和噬菌体，以及近年来发现的厚壁噬菌体目噬菌体和拉克巨型噬菌体。其他主题包括细菌的噬菌体防御、噬菌体抗性和噬菌体 - 抗生素协同作用。文章展望了未来的研究方向，强调了科学成果协调收集的重要性。噬菌体不应取代抗生素，但它们甚至可以提高抗生素的疗效。目前，噬菌体疗法的许可程序仍然具有挑战性。然而，对噬菌体制剂的信任必须基于质量，而质量必须通过统一标准来保证。
