Learning From Mistakes: The Role of Phages in Pandemics.

Ahlam Alsaadi,Majed F Alghoribi,Beatriz Beamud,Pilar Domingo-Calap,Maheswaran Easwaran,Fatma Abdelrahman,Ayman El-Shibiny

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2021.653107

Abstract

The misuse of antibiotics is leading to the emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, and in the absence of available treatments, this has become a major global threat. In the middle of the recent severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, which has challenged the whole world, the emergence of MDR bacteria is increasing due to prophylactic administration of antibiotics to intensive care unit patients to prevent secondary bacterial infections. This is just an example underscoring the need to seek alternative treatments against MDR bacteria. To this end, phage therapy has been proposed as a promising tool. However, further research in the field is mandatory to assure safety protocols and to develop appropriate regulations for its use in clinics. This requires investing more in such non-conventional or alternative therapeutic approaches, to develop new treatment regimens capable of reducing the emergence of MDR and preventing future global public health concerns that could lead to incalculable human and economic losses.

Highlights

The current global health emergency caused by severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), highlights the challenge to combat emergent pathogens with uncharacterized pathogenesis, limited treatments, and unavailable vaccines
In a random cohort of 1,705 patients of Michigan hospitals, antibiotics were prescribed to 57% of COVID-19 hospitalized patients, while only 3.5% had a confirmed bacterial co-infection (Vaughn et al, 2020)
The emerging and growing threat of MDR bacteria is of public concern to both health and economic communities around the world

Summary

INTRODUCTION

The current global health emergency caused by severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), highlights the challenge to combat emergent pathogens with uncharacterized pathogenesis, limited treatments, and unavailable vaccines. With consideration of phage pharmacokinetic and phage-host interaction, sequential administration of phages to patients at different times during the course of treatment has been proposed This approach could reduce bacterial resistance rates caused by modifications in host cell receptors, which prevent phage infection (Nilsson, 2014; Mapes et al, 2016). Stakeholders, academics, and researchers around the world must be aware of the need for urgency to treat a high number of people suffering from MDR infections, which are predicted to be much higher as a primary and as a secondary infection during the current pandemics, being a major global health threat This can be achieved by the establishment of a phage therapy-related regulation to allow for phage therapy research development and to increase incentives in order to increase basic research and translate it to proper clinical trials

CONCLUSION

Findings

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT