Generic placeholder image

Current Drug Delivery

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1567-2018
ISSN (Online): 1875-5704

Review Article

An Overview on Bacteriophages: A Natural Nanostructured Antibacterial Agent

Author(s): Vaibhav Rastogi*, Pragya, Navneet Verma, Arun Kumar Mishra, Gopal Nath, Praveen Kumar Gaur and Anurag Verma

Volume 15, Issue 1, 2018

Page: [3 - 20] Pages: 18

DOI: 10.2174/1567201813666160406115744

Price: $65

Abstract

Background: Recent advances in the field of bionanomedicine not only enable us to produce biomaterials but also to manipulate them at molecular level. Viruses particularly bacteriophages are a promising nanomaterial that can be functionalized with great precision. Bacteriophages are the natural antimicrobial agents that fight against antibiotic resistant bacteria which cause infections in animals, humans, or in crops of agricultural value. The idea of utilizing bacteriophages as therapeutic agents is due to their ability to kill bacteria at the end of the infectious cycle.

Objective: This paper reviewed the general biology of bacteriophages and the presence of receptors on the bacteria which are necessary for the recognition and adsorption of bacteriophages. Pharmacokinetics and therapeutic potential of bacteriophages administered through various routes in treating diverse bacterial infections is also reviewed along with the problems associated with bacteriophage therapy.

Conclusion: Among various routes of administration, parenteral route is found to be the most thriving route for the treatment of systemic infections whereas oral route is meant to treat gastrointestinal infections and; local delivery (skin, nasal, ears) of phages has proven its potency to treat topical infections.

Keywords: Bacterial receptors, bacteriophage, bionanomedicine, delivery routes, pharmacokinetics, antibacterial agents.

Graphical Abstract

Rights & Permissions Print Export Cite as
© 2024 Bentham Science Publishers | Privacy Policy