Phage therapy in the Covid-19 era: Advantages over antibiotics

• Published in: Current research in microbial sciences 2022-01, Vol.3, p.100115, Article 100115
• Main Authors: Khan, Atif, Rao, T. Subba, Joshi, Hiren M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antibiotics; Bacteriophages; Cytokines; Immunomodulation; Multidrug resistance; Review; SARS-CoV-2
• ISSN: 2666-5174; 2666-5174
• DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2022.100115

•Excessive use of antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic may accelerate the emergence of AMR.•Antibiotic-mediated dysbiosis significantly impacts immune-homoeostasis and thereby negatively impacting the recovery from COVID-19.•Antibiotic-induced dysbiosis will also negatively impacts the pulmonary functioning of the COVID-19 patient via the Gut-Lung Axis.•Bacteriophages or “phage therapy” can be an ideal alternative for antibiotics having desired specificity and availability.•Phage therapy can also act as an anti-inflammatory agent to avoid cytokine storm in COVID19. Today, the entire world is battling to contain the spread of COVID-19. Massive efforts are being made to find a therapeutic solution in the shortest possible time. However, the research community is becoming increasingly concerned about taking a shortsighted strategy without contemplating the long-term consequences. For example, It has been reported that only 8.4% of total COVID-19 patients develop a secondary bacterial infection. In comparison, 74.6% of them are administered with antibiotics as prophylactic treatment. We contend that overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics increases the likelihood of AMR development and negatively affects the patient's recovery due to the prevalence of the "gut-lung axis.". Consequently, the use of antibiotics to treat COVID-19 patients must be rationalized, or an alternative treatment must be sought that does not risk contributing to AMR development and positively impacts the treatment outcomes. Phage therapy, a century-old concept, is one of the most promising approaches that can be adapted to serve this purpose. This review emphasizes the negative impact of excessive antibiotic use in COVID-19 treatment and provides an overview of how phage therapy can be used as an alternative treatment option. We have argued that targeted killing (narrow spectrum) and anti-inflammatory (which can target the primary cause of mortality in COVID-19) properties of phages can be an effective alternative to antibiotics. [Display omitted]