Bacterial sensing of bacteriophages in communities: the search for the Rosetta stone

Abstract

Billions of years of evolution have resulted in microbial viruses and their hosts communicating in such a way that neither of these antagonists can dominate the other definitively. Studies of the molecular mechanisms underlying this dialog, initially in bacteriophages, rapidly identified several of the ways in which bacteria resist bacteriophage infections and bacteriophages defeat bacterial defenses. From an ecological perspective, recent data have raised many questions about the dynamic interactions between bacteria and bacteriophages, the densities of which, in complex microbial populations, are only beginning to be investigated. The next challenge will be determining how the dialog between microbial viruses and their hosts modulates complex ecosystems, such as those found in healthy humans or infected patients.

Bacteriophages targeting adherent invasive Escherichia coli strains as a promising new treatment for Crohn's disease

“…23,24,45 This is not surprising as bacteriophages are the most abundant viruses present in the human GIT, being part of our natural microbiota, and are far more abundant than viruses infecting eukaryotic cells. 46,47 Recent virome studies on samples from IBD patients showed that the microbiota of these patients displayed an altered bacteriophage composition, raising questions about the possible role of these viruses in the disease. 48 Most of the bacteriophages detected were temperate [as opposed to virulent], suggesting a putative role in dynamic interactions between bacteria possibly leading to genetic exchanges.…”

Bacteriophages to reduce gut carriage of antibiotic resistant uropathogens with low impact on microbiota composition

“…Indeed, as many studies link microbiota composition to human diseases/disorders, we can envisage the use of bacteriophages to gently manipulate this microbiota composition to maintain an environment favoring human health (Nicholson et al, 2012;Norman et al, 2015;Parekh et al, 2015;Sampson and Mazmanian, 2015). Therefore, given the current 'phage therapy 2.0' stage, with implementation of clinical trials and synthetic biology approaches, research should now engage in 'phage therapy 3.0' by taking into consideration a third partner, the eukaryotic cell (epithelial or immune) (Debarbieux, 2014;Young and Gill, 2015).…”

Ecology of the Oral Microbiome: Beyond Bacteria

“…It is currently estimated that 60–70% of known bacterial genomes contain prophages , a number that is likely to increase as novel phages are sequenced. These prophages are not passive, but rather, they are active participants in shaping the bacterial community composition and biogeography, which in turn have an effect on the human host and its immune system [72, 74–76]. …”