An Alternative Cure: The Adoption and Survival of Bacteriophage Therapy in the USSR, 1922–1955

Abstract

Felix D’Herelle coined the term bacteriophage in 1917 to characterize a hypothetical viral agent responsible for the mysterious phenomenon of rapid bacterial death. While the viral nature of the “phage” was only widely accepted in the 1940s, attempts to use the phenomenon in treating infections started early. After raising hopes in the interwar years, by 1945 phage therapy had been abandoned almost entirely in the West, until the recent revival of interest in response to the crisis of antibiotic resistance. The use of phage therapy, however, persisted within Soviet medicine, especially in Georgia. This article explains the adoption and survival of phage therapy in the USSR. By focusing on the Tbilisi Institute of Microbiology, Epidemiology and Bacteriophage (now the Eliava Institute), I argue that bacteriophage research appealed to Soviet scientists because it offered an ecological model for understanding bacterial infection. In the 1930s, phage therapy grew firmly imbedded within the infrastructure of Soviet microbiological institutes. During the Second World War, bacteriophage preparations gained practical recognition from physicians and military authorities. At the dawn of the Cold War, the growing scientific isolation of Soviet science protected phage therapy from the contemporary western critiques, and the ecological program of research into bacteriophages continued in Georgia.

Gram-Negative Bacterial Lysins

“…In the 1920s, d'Herelle, Eliava and their colleagues showed that phage therapy was effective for prophylaxis and treatment of skin infections caused by Pseudomonas and Staphylococcus, as well as diarrheal illnesses caused by Salmonella and Escherichia coli [11][12][13]. Although efficacy was shown in individual cases, the lack of consistent results and the timely discovery of small molecule antibiotics prevented a widespread adoption of phage therapy for clinical use in the western countries of the world [14]. Bacteriophage therapy is currently part of the antimicrobial armamentarium in Eastern European countries such as Georgia and Russia and is routinely used to treat different types of infections [15].…”

Bacteriophages for Chronic Wound Treatment: From Traditional to Novel Delivery Systems

“…Also, a French article dated 1921 described injection into and around skin infections eliminating the infection within 24 to 48 h [115]. Several results from the former USSR describe the successful use of phage therapy between 1922-1955, reporting mortality decreases and improved healing when administered as early as possible [116].…”

Application of Campylobacter jejuni Phages: Challenges and Perspectives

“…Bacteriophages were successfully used for human therapy almost immediately after their discovery in the beginning of the 20th century [41]. After the triumph of penicillin in 1940s, phage use gradually dwindled in the West, but continued in Georgia (the former USSR) and Poland [44]. The Eliava Institute of Bacteriophage, Microbiology and Virology founded by George Eliava and d'Herelle in Tbilisi in the 1930s still continues its work and has accumulated extensive experience in phage work and phage therapy over the decades.…”