Bacteriophage-host arm race: an update on the mechanism of phage resistance in bacteria and revenge of the phage with the perspective for phage therapy

Abstract

Due to a constant attack by phage, bacteria in the environment have evolved diverse mechanisms to defend themselves. Several reviews on phage resistance mechanisms have been published elsewhere. Thanks to the advancement of molecular techniques, several new phage resistance mechanisms were recently identified. For the practical phage therapy, the emergence of phage-resistant bacteria could be an obstacle. However, unlike antibiotic, phages could evolve a mechanism to counter-adapt against phage-resistant bacteria. In this review, we summarized the most recent studies of the phage-bacteria arm race with the perspective of future applications of phages as antimicrobial agents.

Keywords: Coevolution; Phage resistance mechanism; Phage therapy; Phage-bacteria arm race.