Interactions of Bacteriophages with Animal and Human Organisms—Safety Issues in the Light of Phage Therapy

Podlacha, Magdalena; Grabowski, Łukasz; Kosznik-Kawśnicka, Katarzyna; Zdrojewska, Karolina; Stasiłojć, Małgorzata; Węgrzyn, Grzegorz; Węgrzyn, Alicja

doi:10.3390/ijms22168937

Cited by 66 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 245 publications

(426 reference statements)

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“…These viruses have long been considered neutral to animals and humans because specific receptors for bacteriophages on eukaryotic cells are lacking. However, very recent studies have provided clear evidence that bacteriophages can interact with eukaryotic cells, causing effects on the functions of the immune system, respiratory system, central nervous system, gastrointestinal system, urinary tract, and reproductive system [ 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Could SARS-CoV-2 Have Bacteriophage Behavior or Induce the Activity of Other Bacteriophages?

Brogna¹,

Brogna

Bisaccia³

et al. 2022

Vaccines

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SARS-CoV-2 has become one of the most studied viruses of the last century. It was assumed that the only possible host for these types of viruses was mammalian eukaryotic cells. Our recent studies show that microorganisms in the human gastrointestinal tract affect the severity of COVID-19 and for the first time provide indications that the virus might replicate in gut bacteria. In order to further support these findings, in the present work, cultures of bacteria from the human microbiome and SARS-CoV-2 were analyzed by electron and fluorescence microscopy. The images presented in this article, in association with the nitrogen (15N) isotope-labeled culture medium experiment, suggest that SARS-CoV-2 could also infect bacteria in the gut microbiota, indicating that SARS-CoV-2 could act as a bacteriophage. Our results add new knowledge to the understanding of the mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 infection and fill gaps in the study of the interactions between SARS-CoV-2 and non-mammalian cells. These findings could be useful in suggesting specific new pharmacological solutions to support the vaccination campaign.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Could SARS-CoV-2 Have Bacteriophage Behavior or Induce the Activity of Other Bacteriophages?

Brogna¹,

Brogna

Bisaccia³

et al. 2022

Vaccines

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“…As in most phage genomes currently under study, the majority of the PPH genes play uncharacterized roles. There is increasing evidence that although bacteriophages do not infect eukaryotic cells, they do interact with innate immune cells via Toll-like receptors (which appears to be particularly true for temperate bacteriophages) ( Cieślik et al., 2021 ; Podlacha et al., 2021 ; Popescu et al., 2021 ), but the phage components involved in this are virtually unknown.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Streptococcus pneumoniae: a Plethora of Temperate Bacteriophages With a Role in Host Genome Rearrangement

Martín-Galiano

Garcı́a

2021

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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Bacteriophages (phages) are viruses that infect bacteria. They are the most abundant biological entity on Earth (current estimates suggest there to be perhaps 1031 particles) and are found nearly everywhere. Temperate phages can integrate into the chromosome of their host, and prophages have been found in abundance in sequenced bacterial genomes. Prophages may modulate the virulence of their host in different ways, e.g., by the secretion of phage-encoded toxins or by mediating bacterial infectivity. Some 70% of Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus)—a frequent cause of otitis media, pneumonia, bacteremia and meningitis—isolates harbor one or more prophages. In the present study, over 4000 S. pneumoniae genomes were examined for the presence of prophages, and nearly 90% were found to contain at least one prophage, either defective (47%) or present in full (43%). More than 7000 complete putative integrases, either of the tyrosine (6243) or serine (957) families, and 1210 full-sized endolysins (among them 1180 enzymes corresponding to 318 amino acid-long N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidases [LytAPPH]) were found. Based on their integration site, 26 different pneumococcal prophage groups were documented. Prophages coding for tRNAs, putative virulence factors and different methyltransferases were also detected. The members of one group of diverse prophages (PPH090) were found to integrate into the 3’ end of the host lytASpn gene encoding the major S. pneumoniae autolysin without disrupting it. The great similarity of the lytASpnand lytAPPH genes (85–92% identity) allowed them to recombine, via an apparent integrase-independent mechanism, to produce different DNA rearrangements within the pneumococcal chromosome. This study provides a complete dataset that can be used to further analyze pneumococcal prophages, their evolutionary relationships, and their role in the pathogenesis of pneumococcal disease.

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“…Moreover, phages were also suggested as human pathogens ( Tetz et al 2017 ; Tetz and Tetz 2018 ). Therefore, interactions of bacteriophages with human and animal organisms must be carefully analyzed when considering the clinical use of these viruses ( Podlacha et al 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Should Bacteriophages Be Classified as Parasites or Predators?

Węgrzyn

2022

Polish Journal of Microbiology

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Bacteriophages are viruses infecting bacteria and propagating in bacterial cells. They were discovered over 100 years ago, and for decades they played crucial roles as models in genetics and molecular biology and as tools in genetic engineering and biotechnology. Now we also recognize their huge role in natural environment and their importance in human health and disease. Despite our understanding of bacteriophage mechanisms of development, these viruses are described as parasites or predators in the literature. From the biological point of view, there are fundamental differences between parasites and predators. Therefore, in this article, I asked whether bacteriophages should be classified as former or latter biological entities. Analysis of the literature and biological definitions led me to conclude that bacteriophages are parasites rather than predators and should be classified and described as such. If even more precise ecological classification is needed, bacteriophages can perhaps be included in the group of parasitoids. It might be the most appropriate formal classification of these viruses, especially if strictly virulent phages are considered, contrary to phages which lysogenize host cells and those which develop according to the permanent infection mode (or chronic cycle, like filamentous phages) revealing features of classical parasites.

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Interactions of Bacteriophages with Animal and Human Organisms—Safety Issues in the Light of Phage Therapy

Cited by 66 publications

References 245 publications

Could SARS-CoV-2 Have Bacteriophage Behavior or Induce the Activity of Other Bacteriophages?

Could SARS-CoV-2 Have Bacteriophage Behavior or Induce the Activity of Other Bacteriophages?

Streptococcus pneumoniae: a Plethora of Temperate Bacteriophages With a Role in Host Genome Rearrangement

Should Bacteriophages Be Classified as Parasites or Predators?

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