ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Antimicrobials, Resistance and Chemotherapy
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1608243
This article is part of the Research TopicInnovation in Tackling the Global Challenge of Eradicating Antibiotic-Resistant MicroorganismsView all 15 articles
Efficacy of a commercial bacteriophages cocktail against planktonic cells, thin and thick biofilms of skin pathogens measured using isothermal microcalorimetry
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- 2University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland
- 3Alta uro AG, Basel, Switzerland
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Introduction: Skin and soft tissues infections are frequent and often require antibiotics treatment. However for mild and self-limiting lesions bacteriophage therapy could be an interesting treatment option limiting the use of antimicrobials and thus avoiding the appearance of resistances. Still very few is known about the efficacy of commercial phage cockails against biofilm encouneterd in such lesions. In this study we investigated the use of a commercial phage cocktail against Staphylococci and streptococci grown planktonically, in this biofilm and in thick biofilms.Methods: Isothermal microcalorimetry was used to monitor the metabolic activity of planctonic cell, as well as cell grown in thin or thick biofilms of common skin pathogens (Stahpylococcus aureus and Stahpylococcus epidermidis as well as Streptococcus agalactiae) when exposed to the commercial phage cocktail.Results: Application of phage against sensivite strains showed a rapid decrease of metabolic activity upon planktonic cell. However, when applied to thin biofilm the effect was already less although still rather important. Finally, no effect was visible on thick and mature biofilm.Conclusion: Bacteriophage cocktails efficacy are limited by the tickness and the maturation of biofilms. In the case of skin and soft tissues infections, especially for chronic wounds, it might be necessary to mechanically remove and disrupt the biofilm by mechanical debridment to allow the phage product to be efficient.
Keywords: Phage (bacteriophage), Isothermal calorimetry, Biofilms, Staphylocccus, Phage therapies
Received: 08 Apr 2025; Accepted: 07 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Lafranca, Bonkat, Rieken and Braissant. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Olivier Braissant, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
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