Bacteriophages in Food Applications: From Foe to Friend

Authors

Lisa O'Sullivan, Department of Biological Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, Ireland
Declan Bolton, Moorepark Food Research Centre
Olivia McAuliffe, Moorepark Food Research Centre
Aidan Coffey, Department of Biological Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, IrelandFollow

ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4116-9913

Document Type

Article

Disciplines

Biology

Publication Details

Annual Review of Food Science and Technology

© 2019 by Annual Reviews. All rights reserved.

Abstract

Bacteriophages (phages) have traditionally been considered troublesome in food fermentations, as they are an important cause of starter-culture failure and trigger significant financial losses. In addition, from an evolutionary perspective, phages have contributed to the pathogenicity of many bacteria through transduction of virulence genes. In contrast, phages have played an important positive role in molecular biology. Moreover, these agents are increasingly being recognized as a potential solution to the detection and biocontrol of various undesirable bacteria, which cause either spoilage of food materials, decreased microbiological safety of foods, or infectious diseases in food animals and crops. The documented successful applications of phages and various phage-derived molecules are discussed in this review, as are many promising new uses that are currently under development.

Recommended Citation

O’Sullivan, L. et al., 2019. Bacteriophages in Food Applications: From Foe to Friend. Annual Review of Food Science and Technology, 10(1), pp.151–172. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev-food-032818-121747.