Isolation and complete genome sequence of bacteriophage Gekk3-15.

Bacteria of the genus , especially and are recognized as important fish pathogens that cause significant economic losses in aquaculture. Environmentally friendly bacteriophage-based solutions for the treatment of fish and for the reduction of colonization by pathogenic bacteria in production facilities are currently in high demand. The bacteriophage Gekk3-15 was isolated during a search for novel phage strains potentially suitable for biocontrol applications.

Phage-induced efflux down-regulation boosts antibiotic efficacy.

The interactions between a virus and its host vary in space and time and are affected by the presence of molecules that alter the physiology of either the host or the virus. Determining the molecular mechanisms at the basis of these interactions is paramount for predicting the fate of bacterial and phage populations and for designing rational phage-antibiotic therapies. We study the interactions between stationary phase Burkholderia thailandensis and the phage ΦBp-AMP1.

Induced prophages detected from the hemoculture: a biomarker for infection.

Bacteriophages (phages), viruses that infect bacteria, are found in abundance not only in the environment but also in the human body. The use of phages for the diagnosis of melioidosis, a tropical infectious disease caused by , is emerging as a promising novel approach, but our understanding of conditions under which prophages can be induced remains limited. Here, we first demonstrated the isolation of phages from the hemocultures of melioidosis patients.

Activity of a Bacteriophage Cocktail to Control Growth in Avian, Porcine, and Human Epithelial Cell Cultures.

We examined the activity of phages to control the growth of chicken and swine strains in avian (CHIC-8E11), porcine (IPEC-1), and human (HT-29) cell cultures. We optimized a six-phage cocktail by selecting the five most effective myoviruses and a siphovirus that have optimal lysis on prevalent serovars. We observed ∼20% of 7 log PFU/well phage and 3-6 log CFU bacterial adhesions, and 3-5 log CFU bacterial invasion per 2 cm of the cultured cells at 2 h post-treatment.

Therapeutic effects of oral administration of lytic phages in a mouse model of non-typhoidal salmonellosis.

Acute non-typhoidal salmonellosis (NTS) caused by a Gram-negative bacterium serovar Typhimurium ( Tm) is one of the most common bacterial foodborne diseases worldwide. Bacteriophages (phages) can specifically target and lyse their host bacteria, including the multidrug-resistant strains, without collateral damage to other bacteria in the community. However, the therapeutic use of phages is still poorly investigated.