title: Bacteriophage Procurement for Therapeutic Purposes.
abstract: Bacteriophages (phages), discovered 100 years ago, are able to infect and destroy only bacterial cells. In the current crisis of antibiotic efficacy, phage therapy is considered as a supplementary or even alternative therapeutic approach. Evolution of multidrug-resistant and pandrug-resistant bacterial strains poses a real threat, so it is extremely important to have the possibility to isolate new phages for therapeutic purposes. Our phage laboratory and therapy center has extensive experience with phage isolation, characterization, and therapeutic application. In this article we present current progress in bacteriophages isolation and use for therapeutic purposes, our experience in this field and its practical implications for phage therapy. We attempt to summarize the state of the art: properties of phages, the methods for their isolation, criteria of phage selection for therapeutic purposes and limitations of their use. Perspectives for the use of genetically engineered phages to specifically target bacterial virulence-associated genes are also briefly presented.
authors: Bacteriophage Laboratory, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of SciencesWroclaw, Poland; Phage Therapy Unit, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of SciencesWroclaw, Poland.
authors: Beata
authors: B
authors: Weber-Dąbrowska
authors: Bacteriophage Laboratory, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences Wroclaw, Poland.
authors: Ewa
authors: E
authors: Jończyk-Matysiak
authors: Bacteriophage Laboratory, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences Wroclaw, Poland.
authors: Maciej
authors: M
authors: Żaczek
authors: Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Polish Academy of SciencesWarsaw, Poland; Autonomous Department of Microbial Biology, Faculty of Agriculture and Biology, Warsaw University of Life SciencesWarsaw, Poland.
authors: Małgorzata
authors: M
authors: Łobocka
authors: Bacteriophage Laboratory, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences Wroclaw, Poland.
authors: Marzanna
authors: M
authors: Łusiak-Szelachowska
authors: Bacteriophage Laboratory, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of SciencesWroclaw, Poland; Phage Therapy Unit, Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of SciencesWroclaw, Poland; Department of Clinical Immunology, Transplantation Institute, Medical University of WarsawWarsaw, Poland.
authors: Andrzej
authors: A
authors: Górski
keywords: antibiotic resistance; bacteriophage isolation; experimental phage therapy; therapeutic phages; treatment of bacterial infections