Fighting fire with fire: phage discovery & characterisation to tackle antibiotic resistance crisis

• Main Author: Lee, Guo Wei
• Other Authors: Yap Peng Huat Eric
• Format: Student Research Poster
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/180861
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Bacteriophages, also known as "phages”, are viruses with a DNA or RNA genome encased in a protein capsid. These viruses can replicate lytically or lysogenically. The lytic phages can infect bacteria specifically and use their cellular machinery to replicate and produce more phage particles, resulting in bacterial cell lysis. With the rise in antibiotic resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains in Asia, it has rekindled interest in phage discovery and characterisation since these lytic phages may be used as an alternative treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections. Hence, this study aims to isolate Klebsiella phages with clinical significance from the environment and characterize them phenotypically and genotypically.