Antibiotics
Phage therapy is another option that is being looked into for treating resistant strains of bacteria. The way that researchers are doing this is by infecting pathogenic bacteria with their own viruses, more specifically, bacteriophages. Bacteriophages, also known simply as phages, are precisely bacterial viruses that infect bacteria by disrupting pathogenic bacterium lytic cycles. By disrupting the lytic cycles of bacterium, phages destroy their metabolism, which eventually results in the cell's death. Phages will insert their DNA into the bacterium, allowing their DNA to be transcribed. Once their DNA is transcribed the cell will proceed to make new phages and as soon as they are ready to be released, the cell will lyse. One of the worries about using phages to fight pathogens is that the phages will infect "good" bacteria, or the bacteria that are important in the everyday function of human beings. However, studies have proven that phages are very specific when they target bacteria, which makes researchers confident that bacteriophage therapy is the definite route to defeating antibiotic resistant bacteria.
What is a worry of using phages?
phages will infect "good" bacteria
One of the worries about using phages to fight pathogens is that the phages will infect "good" bacteria, or the bacteria that are important in the everyday function of human beings.
phages