Three New Escherichia coli Phages from the Human Gut Show Promising Potential for Phage Therapy.

Marion Dalmasso,Fabien J Cousin,Ronan Strain,R Paul Ross,Charles M A P Franz,Colin Hill,Horst Neve,Raymond Schuch

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0156773

Abstract

With the emergence of multi-drug resistant bacteria the use of bacteriophages (phages) is gaining renewed interest as promising anti-microbial agents. The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize phages from human fecal samples. Three new coliphages, ɸAPCEc01, ɸAPCEc02 and ɸAPCEc03, were isolated. Their phenotypic and genomic characteristics, and lytic activity against biofilm, and in combination with ciprofloxacin, were investigated. All three phages reduced the growth of E. coli strain DPC6051 at multiplicity of infection (MOI) between 10−3 and 105. A cocktail of all three phages completely inhibited the growth of E. coli. The phage cocktail also reduced biofilm formation and prevented the emergence of phage-resistant mutants which occurred with single phage. When combined with ciprofloxacin, phage alone or in cocktail inhibited the growth of E. coli and prevented the emergence of resistant mutants. These three new phages are promising biocontrol agents for E. coli infections.

Highlights

Several members of the Escherichia coli species have emerged as important human pathogens
Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) are of particular concern, as they cause infections which can be fatal in sensitive populations [2, 3]
Pigs infected with enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC)

Summary

Introduction

Several members of the Escherichia coli species have emerged as important human pathogens. E. coli O157:H7 can be the cause of acute diarrhea, hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome [1]. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) are of particular concern, as they cause infections which can be fatal in sensitive populations [2, 3]. Bacteriophages (phages), viruses of bacteria, have been exploited for their potential as antibacterial agents since their discovery over 100 years ago [5, 6]. Some phage preparations, such as ListShieldTM and LISTEXTM P100, are approved for the control of pathogenic bacteria in food [7, 8]. Pigs infected with enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC)

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Results