title: Combined use of bacteriophage K and a novel bacteriophage to reduce Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation.
abstract: Biofilms are major causes of impairment of wound healing and patient morbidity. One of the most common and aggressive wound pathogens is Staphylococcus aureus, displaying a large repertoire of virulence factors and commonly reduced susceptibility to antibiotics, such as the spread of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Bacteriophages are obligate parasites of bacteria. They multiply intracellularly and lyse their bacterial host, releasing their progeny. We isolated a novel phage, DRA88, which has a broad host range among S. aureus bacteria. Morphologically, the phage belongs to the Myoviridae family and comprises a large double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome of 141,907 bp. DRA88 was mixed with phage K to produce a high-titer mixture that showed strong lytic activity against a wide range of S. aureus isolates, including representatives of the major international MRSA clones and coagulase-negative Staphylococcus. Its efficacy was assessed both in planktonic cultures and when treating established biofilms produced by three different biofilm-producing S. aureus isolates. A significant reduction of biofilm biomass over 48 h of treatment was recorded in all cases. The phage mixture may form the basis of an effective treatment for infections caused by S. aureus biofilms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Alves
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gaudion
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Bean
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Perez Esteban
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: T C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Arnot
authors.affiliation: AmpliPhi Biosciences Corp., Colworth Science Park, Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Harper
authors.affiliation: Section of Microbiology, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kot
authors.affiliation: Section of Microbiology, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus Universitet, Roskilde, Denmark.
authors.forename: L H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Enright
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom a.t.a.jenkins@bath.ac.uk.
authors.forename: A Tobias A
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Jenkins
mesh_terms: D001433:Bacteriolysis; D018441:Biofilms / Q000254:growth & development*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D058507:Host Specificity; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017900:Myoviridae / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013204:Staphylococcus Phages / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000502:physiology* / Q000821:virology*; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral