The enemy of my enemy is… A virus that attacks bacteria: bacteriophages

Abstract

Virus particles infect all life forms. Bacteriophage viruses, the ones that infect bacteria, were discovered before antibiotics. Despite its small size, they have contributed to scientific development such as the discovery of many enzymes with applications in molecular biology. In this paper we describe general aspects of their biology and their contribution to health, along with successful cases of antimicrobial therapy using bacteriophages in humans and animals. Despite the fact that there are no commercial authorizations for its global use, there are commercial bacteriophage formulations for the food industry. We will describe the main weapon of bacteriophages, endolysin, an enzyme useful for lysing bacteria. Endolysins are considered safer than bacteriophages because they lack genetic material. Bacteriophages and endolysins have revolutionary applications in medicine, such as the viral-like particles, useful for small molecules delivery or vaccine design, in the generation of bacterial ghosts and in the diagnostic and detection of pathogenic bacteria.

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