Open AccessIsolation and characterization of a novel Enterococcus faecalis bacteriophage φEF24C as a therapeutic candidate
Author(s) -
Uchiyama Jumpei,
Rashel Mohammad,
Maeda Yoshihiro,
Takemura Iyo,
Sugihara Shigeyoshi,
Akechi Kazue,
Muraoka Asako,
Wakiguchi Hiroshi,
Matsuzaki Shigenobu
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2007.00996.x
Subject(s) - enterococcus faecalis , lytic cycle , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteriophage , phage therapy , biology , myoviridae , virulence , enterococcus , bacteria , genome , virology , virus , genetics , antibiotics , staphylococcus aureus , gene , escherichia coli
Vancomycin‐resistant Enterococcus faecalis (VRE) has become a significant threat in nosocomial settings. Bacteriophage (phage) therapy is frequently proposed as a potential alternative therapy for infections caused by this bacterium. To search for candidate therapeutic phages against Enterococcus faecalis infections, 30 Enterococcus faecalis phages were isolated from the environment. One of these, virulent phage φEF24C, which has a broad host range, was selected for analysis. The plaque‐forming ability of φEF24C was virtually unaffected by differences in the clinical host strains. Furthermore, the phage had a shorter latent period and a larger burst size than ordinary tailed phages, indicating that φEF24C has effective lytic activity against many Enterococcus faecalis strains, including VRE. Morphological and genomic analyses revealed that φEF24C is a large myovirus (classified as family Myoviridae morphotype A1) with a linear double‐stranded DNA genome of c . 143 kbp. Analyses of the N‐terminal amino acid sequences of the virion proteins, together with the morphology and the genome size, speculated that φEF24C is closely related to other myoviruses of Gram‐positive bacteria that have been used experimentally or practically for therapy or prophylaxis. Considering these results, φEF24C may be a potential candidate therapeutic phage against Enterococcus faecalis infections.