Description of Invention:
Recently, there has been a renewed interest in the use of phages to treat bacterial infections. The inventors have discovered FK1-5, a highly lytic, non-lysogenic, stable bacteriophage with the ability to kill bacteria rapidly, making it a good candidate for phage therapy. The designation FK1-5 denotes the phage's ability to infect E. coli strains that contain the K1 polysaccharide in their outer capsule as well as E. coli strains that contain the K5 polysaccharide in their outer capsule. Sequence analysis of the tail proteins of phage FK1-5 by the inventors has shown that they are arranged in a cassette structure, suggesting that the host range of phages can be broadened to other K antigens, and even possibly other species of bacteria by recombinant techniques. FK1-5 has a particular advantage because it recognizes and attaches to the structures that confer virulence to bacteria. The inventors' demonstration that a phage can contain multiple tail proteins that expand its host range is useful for generating phage with broad-spectrum antibacterial properties for the treatment of infectious diseases. The inventors have completed in vitro studies on this phage. Furthermore, because of the possibility of engineering the expression of recombinant tail proteins, gene transfer to organisms that are not normally infected by phages is also contemplated by the invention.
Inventors:
Carl Merril (NIMH) Sankar Adhya (NCI) Dean Scholl (NIMH)
Patent Status:
DHHS Reference No. E-257-2000/0 --
U.S. Patent No. 7,163,818 issued 16 Jan 2007
For Additional Information Please Contact: Peter A. Soukas J.D.
NIH Office of Technology Transfer
6011 Executive Blvd, Suite 325
Rockville, MD 20852-3804
Phone: (301) 435-4646
Email: soukasp@mail.nih.gov
Fax: (301) 402-0220
