11 ms·
Vaccines and antibiotics are not the only ways, and certainly not the most effective ways, to fight bacterial infections. What we should be focusing on is deve
by mcbaby 15y ago
Vaccines and antibiotics are not the only ways, and certainly not the most effective ways, to fight bacterial infections.
What we should be focusing on is developing bacteriophage technology (namely phage lysins).
As every human (a eukaryote) is prone to certain viruses (which can act only on eukaryotes), every bacteria (a prokaryote), this includes strep throat, TB, etc., is vulnerable to certain viruses (which can only work prokaryotes). These viruses are so specific that they only work on one type of bacteria, and they evolve at nearly the same rate as a bacteria evolves (which is how TB has become antibiotic resistant).
http://www.rockefeller.edu/vaf/phage.php http://www.rockefeller.edu/vaf/phage.php
- carbocation 15y agoPeople have been trying to use mycobacteriophages to treat TB since the 90s (at least) with no success: http://tbevidence.org/tbevidence_old_site_files/documents/rescentre/sop/studies/Bacteriophage-based%20assay/General/9.pdf http://tbevidence.org/tbevidence_old_site_files/documents/re... In contrast, vaccines for TB have made actual progress in animal studies: http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v17/n10/full/nm.2420.html http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v17/n10/full/nm.2420.html