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Reprogramming bacteriophage host range: design principles and strategies for engineering receptor binding proteins.
Matthew Dunne1, Nikolai S Prokhorov2, Martin J Loessner1
1Institute of Food, Nutrition and Health, ETH Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 7, 8092, Zurich, Switzerland.
Current Opinion in Biotechnology
|March 21, 2021
Summary
Bacteriophages (phages) use receptor binding proteins (RBPs) to infect bacteria. Engineering RBPs can broaden phage host range, enhancing their potential as novel therapeutics for bacterial infections.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Molecular Biology
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Bacteriophages (phages) are viruses that infect bacteria.
- Phages utilize specialized tail machinery, including receptor binding proteins (RBPs), for host cell entry.
- The narrow host range of natural phages limits their therapeutic applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe RBP engineering platforms for expanding phage host range.
- To elucidate mechanisms connecting RBP binding to phage attachment.
- To inform the development of improved phage-based therapeutics.
Main Methods:
- Review of RBP engineering strategies (directed evolution, structure-guided engineering).
- Analysis of mechanisms governing RBP-mediated phage-host recognition and attachment.
- Discussion of implications for therapeutic phage design.
Main Results:
- Engineering of RBPs offers a viable strategy to broaden phage host specificity.
- Understanding RBP-host interactions is crucial for precise phage targeting.
- Spatial and temporal aspects of phage attachment are linked to RBP function.
Conclusions:
- RBP engineering platforms provide tools to enhance phage therapeutic potential.
- Further research into RBP-host interactions will facilitate the design of effective phage therapies.
- Optimized phage-bacteria interactions are key for successful phage-based treatments.
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