Antibiotic resistance is one of the growing concerns in healthcare settings.
Most of the clinical and community (bacterial) strains have grown immune to almost
all the available antibiotics. The discovery of new antibiotics or resurging of available
antibiotics has failed to outcompete the growing resistance within the bacterial
community. Thus, finding an alternative antibacterial modality to treat infectious
diseases has become a significant objective among the scientific community around the
globe. Phage therapy is one such an antibacterial therapy for the treatment of severe
bacterial infections. The bacteriophages (or phage) are viruses that prey on bacteria for
their multiplication and survival. Discovery of bacteriophage dates back to the early
1910s when Frederick W. Twort and Felix d'Herelle observed bacteriolytic activity.
Before the discovery of antibiotics, phages were the choice of treatment against
bacterial infections, but with the inconsistent research, phage therapy lost its
importance in the therapeutics. With the emergence of antibiotic resistance, phage
therapy and phage research has got a shape to revolutionize the growing bacterial
infections. Phage therapy has shown promising results against severe bacterial
infections in the circumstances where antibiotic treatment is ineffectual. This
emergency has shed light on this forgotten therapy. This chapter will elucidate the
history and fundamentals of phage biology and its significance in treating infectious
diseases. With the special focus on advancements in phage research and their clinical
outcomes which supports the use of phage therapy in humans. It also deals with the regulatory inputs required for phage therapy and the commercialization strategies
undertaken by pharmaceuticals in the globalization of phage medicine. Besides, the
authors would like to brief on the personalized phage therapy and their evolution from
lab to bedside endpoints for treating the patients and other future perspectives that hold
promise.
Keywords: Antibacterials, Antibiotic resistance, Bacteriophages, Bacterial
pathogens, Caudovirales, Phage resistance, Phage therapy.
