ORCID
0000-0002-8370-9925
Department
Biological Sciences
Year of Study
3
Full-time or Part-time Study
Full-time
Level
Postgraduate
Presentation Type
Poster
Supervisor
Prof Jim O'Mahony
Supervisor
Prof Aidan Coffey
Abstract
Background
Mycobacterial disease is a major cause of fatality worldwide, with approximately 1.5 million deaths for every 10 million infections. These infections are difficult to treat due to the intrinsic resistance of its mycolic acid rich cell wall to many antibiotics. There is potential for mycobacteriophage (MP) to be used therapeutically for multidrug- and extensively-drug resistant infections. Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2 155 is a useful substitute for slow-growing pathogenic mycobacteria, as it propagates quickly under lab conditions. This feature of M. smegmatis increases the pace of analysis, by ensuring the quick isolation and characterisation of MP and acting as a model organism for proof-of-concept studies.
Methods
M. smegmatis was used to spike various matrices before applying phage to provide insights into which matrices permit phage infection. Here we demonstrate the application of a recently characterised MP, LOCARD, to various mediums spiked with M. smegmatis, including broth, milk and simulated intestinal fluid. MP survival in simulated gastric fluid was also examined to determine whether encapsulation could enhance delivery to the intestinal environment.
Conclusion
Through reduction in bacterial numbers or phage propagation, we infer the environments which permit phage-host interaction sufficiently to reduce the mycobacterial burden of each matrix. From these rapidly generated results, we can hypothesise and extrapolate how slow-growing mycobacterium species and their phages may interact in these conditions, helping guide the design of future experiments and therapies.
Keywords:
Mycobacteriophage, alginate, milk, gastric, intestinal
Start Date
2-11-2023 11:15 AM
End Date
2-11-2023 12:00 PM
Recommended Citation
O'Connell, Laura, "Mycobacteriophage: A demonstration of the reduction of M. smegmatis in various matrices." (2023). ORBioM (Open Research BioSciences Meeting). 12.
https://sword.cit.ie/orbiom/2023/posters/12
Included in
Mycobacteriophage: A demonstration of the reduction of M. smegmatis in various matrices.
Background
Mycobacterial disease is a major cause of fatality worldwide, with approximately 1.5 million deaths for every 10 million infections. These infections are difficult to treat due to the intrinsic resistance of its mycolic acid rich cell wall to many antibiotics. There is potential for mycobacteriophage (MP) to be used therapeutically for multidrug- and extensively-drug resistant infections. Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2 155 is a useful substitute for slow-growing pathogenic mycobacteria, as it propagates quickly under lab conditions. This feature of M. smegmatis increases the pace of analysis, by ensuring the quick isolation and characterisation of MP and acting as a model organism for proof-of-concept studies.
Methods
M. smegmatis was used to spike various matrices before applying phage to provide insights into which matrices permit phage infection. Here we demonstrate the application of a recently characterised MP, LOCARD, to various mediums spiked with M. smegmatis, including broth, milk and simulated intestinal fluid. MP survival in simulated gastric fluid was also examined to determine whether encapsulation could enhance delivery to the intestinal environment.
Conclusion
Through reduction in bacterial numbers or phage propagation, we infer the environments which permit phage-host interaction sufficiently to reduce the mycobacterial burden of each matrix. From these rapidly generated results, we can hypothesise and extrapolate how slow-growing mycobacterium species and their phages may interact in these conditions, helping guide the design of future experiments and therapies.