Bacteriophages:
Our most powerful tool
to fight against bacteria

Bacteriophages
Our most powerful tool to fight against bacteria

Bacteriophages:
Our most powerful tool
to fight against bacteria

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DEFINITION

What is
a bacteriophage?

Bacteriophages, or simply phages, are the biological predators of bacteria. Found everywhere from your gut to the soil, their main function is to regulate the number of bacteria in microbiomes whether it’s in humans, animals, plants, or in the environment.

Through millions of years of co-evolution with bacteria, phages have become so specialized that they can only detect and target highly specific bacteria, leaving all other cells untouched.

By finding the right phages from the environment, we can design safe and effective medicines to prevent and cure bacterial infections, also known as phage therapy.

10

MILLION

The number of phages in a drop of seawater. Phages are the most abundant biological entities on earth and occur anywhere bacteria are present.

30

MINUTES

The average time it takes for a phage to eliminate its target bacterium.

1

TARGET

A phage is usually effective against a single bacterial species. Phages do not interact with human or animal cells.

100+

YEARS AGO

French microbiologist Félix d’Hérelle coined the term “bacteriophage,” meaning “bacteria eater.”

MECHANISM

How do phages work?

IDENTIFY BACTERIAL TARGETS

The phage scans for their specific bacterial target and attaches to unique receptors on the bacterium's surface.

IDENTIFY BACTERIAL TARGETS

The phage scans for their specific bacterial target and attaches to unique receptors on the bacterium's surface.

BACTERIAL CELL TAKEOVER

The phage injects its DNA, which hijacks the bacterium's machinery to mass-produce new phages.

BACTERIAL CELL TAKEOVER

The phage injects its DNA, which hijacks the bacterium's machinery to mass-produce new phages.

BACTERIAL LYSIS

In around 30 minutes, the bacterium bursts open to release hundreds of newly-made phages to repeat the cycle.

BACTERIAL LYSIS

In around 30 minutes, the bacterium bursts open to release hundreds of newly-made phages to repeat the cycle.

CYCLE COMPLETE

Once target bacteria are eliminated, the phages naturally diminish and are cleared by the immune system.

CYCLE COMPLETE

Once target bacteria are eliminated, the phages naturally diminish and are cleared by the immune system.

PHAGE 101

Phage Classification

LYTIC

Lytic phages rapidly destroy bacteria through lysis, which is the release of an enzyme that breaks down cell walls.

TEMPERATE

Temperate phages lie dormant inside bacterial DNA for varying amounts of time before eventually destroying the bacteria through cell lysis.

Phage therapy only uses lytic phages for their ability to eliminate bacteria quickly.

FUTURE applicationS

The Future of Phage Therapy

Phages hold extraordinary potential to transform how we protect life from bacterial threats. Most urgently fighting antibiotic-resistant superbugs in humans and preventing disease in livestock. However their potential applications have a great range.

HUMAN HEALTH
Treat antibiotic-resistant superbugs and multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections.
ANIMAL HEALTH
Prevent and treat bacterial diseases in livestock, reducing the need for antibiotics.
AGRICULTURE
Protect crops from bacterial plant diseases as a sustainable pesticide alternative.
FOOD SAFETY
Eliminate pathogens in processing facilities and extend shelf life.
MEDICAL ENVIRONMENTS
Disinfect surfaces in hospitals and medical devices to prevent the spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs and multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections.
MEDICAL APPLICATIONS
Engineer phages as targeted delivery vehicles to transport therapeutic drugs directly to specific tissues and cells.

HUMAN HEALTH
Treat antibiotic-resistant superbugs and multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections.
ANIMAL HEALTH
Prevent and treat bacterial diseases in livestock, reducing the need for antibiotics.
AGRICULTURE
Protect crops from bacterial plant diseases as a sustainable pesticide alternative.
FOOD SAFETY
Eliminate pathogens in processing facilities and extend shelf life.
MEDICAL ENVIRONMENTS
Disinfect surfaces in hospitals and medical devices to prevent the spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs and multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections.
MEDICAL APPLICATIONS
Engineer phages as targeted delivery vehicles to transport therapeutic drugs directly to specific tissues and cells.

TIMELINE

A history
of phage therapy

For the past 100 years, phages have journeyed from groundbreaking discovery to near abandonment. Now with advancements in microbiology and artificial intelligence, they are emerging as a solution  to the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) crisis.

1915-1917
Félix d'Hérelle and Frederick Twort independently discover bacteriophages.
1917
Félix d’Hérell uses phages to treat dysentery patients successfully, the first recorded phage therapy.
1928
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.
1940s
The antibiotic era begins as penicillin's broad-spectrum effectiveness and scalable mass production overshadow phage therapy in the West.
1950s
Antibiotics begin widespread use as growth promoters in animal farming.
1940s-1990s
The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe continue developing phage therapy while the West abandons phage research.
1990s
The AMR crisis (antimicrobial resistance) sparks renewed interest in phage therapy.
2006
The European Union bans antibiotic use as a growth promoter in animal farming.
2015
DeepMind's AlphaFold shows AI’s ability to tackle complex biological structure prediction problems, paving the way for new use cases for phage therapy.
2025
Alphagos receives world's first phage platform authorization for use in animal farming.

1915-1917
Félix d'Hérelle and Frederick Twort independently discover bacteriophages.
1917
Félix d’Hérell uses phages to treat dysentery patients successfully, the first recorded phage therapy.
1928
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.
1940s
The antibiotic era begins as penicillin's broad-spectrum effectiveness and scalable mass production overshadow phage therapy in the West.
1950s
Antibiotics begin widespread use as growth promoters in animal farming.
1940s-1990s
The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe continue developing phage therapy while the West abandons phage research.
1990s
The AMR crisis (antimicrobial resistance) sparks renewed interest in phage therapy.
2006
The European Union bans antibiotic use as a growth promoter in animal farming.
2015
DeepMind's AlphaFold shows AI’s ability to tackle complex biological structure prediction problems, paving the way for new use cases for phage therapy.
2025
Alphagos receives world's first phage platform authorization for use in animal farming.

1915-1917
Félix d'Hérelle and Frederick Twort independently discover bacteriophages.
1917
Félix d’Hérell uses phages to treat dysentery patients successfully, the first recorded phage therapy.
1928
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.
1940s
The antibiotic era begins as penicillin's broad-spectrum effectiveness and scalable mass production overshadow phage therapy in the West.
1950s
Antibiotics begin widespread use as growth promoters in animal farming.
1940s-1990s
The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe continue developing phage therapy while the West abandons phage research.
1990s
The AMR crisis (antimicrobial resistance) sparks renewed interest in phage therapy.
2006
The European Union bans antibiotic use as a growth promoter in animal farming.
2015
DeepMind's AlphaFold shows AI’s ability to tackle complex biological structure prediction problems, paving the way for new use cases for phage therapy.
2025
Alphagos receives world's first phage platform authorization for use in animal farming.

FAQS

Frequently asked questions

What is phage therapy?

Phage therapy is the use of bacteriophages to treat pathogenic bacterial infections.

Are phages safe for humans?

Phages have an excellent safety profile because they're naturally occurring and highly selective. They only attack specific bacterial targets, leaving human cells and beneficial bacteria untouched.

What happens to all the phages after a bacterial infection is treated?

Phages cannot survive without their host bacteria. The body’s immune system naturally clears out any remaining phages that are no longer needed. This is done by white blood cells responsible for clearing out debris and dead cells from the body (macrophages).

Are animals treated with phages safe to eat?

Yes. Humans and animals are naturally in contact with high amounts of bacteriophages produced natively in the gastrointestinal tract as well as food, water, and the environment.

Can bacteriophages replace antibiotics?

Phage therapy represents a paradigm shift in treating bacterial infections and can greatly reduce the need for antibiotics. It is unlikely there will ever be one tool capable of treating all bacterial infections, but phages are a powerful tool to prevent and cure bacterial infections in addition to antibiotics, vaccinations, and good hygiene practices.

Why isn’t phage therapy already widely available?

The main reasons are technological development and regulatory pathways. Phage therapy couldn't be scaled initially because scientists lacked both the laboratory tools for precise phage identification and the technology to design personalized phage medicines quickly enough. Advances in microbiology and artificial intelligence are now changing this.   The biological nature of phages also requires a different regulatory approach than traditional antibiotics (a chemical). Regulatory agencies around the world are actively working to establish pathways for this promising technology in order to relieve the burden of the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) crisis.

Can I use it on my pets?

Bacteriophages:Our most powerful toolto fight against bacteria