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Updated: Jan 8, 2026

Author Spotlight: Efficiently Eliminating Bacteriophages from Infected Salmonella Cultures Using Lipopolysaccharides
Published on: June 28, 2024
Employing bacteriophages to combat cancer
Alicja Węgrzyn1, Sylwia Bloch2, Grzegorz Węgrzyn2
1Phage Therapy Center, University Center for Applied and Interdisciplinary Research, University of Gdansk, Kładki 24, 80-822 Gdansk, Poland.
None:
Bacteriophages are viruses infecting bacterial cells; therefore, their application in cancer research may initially appear counterintuitive. Nevertheless, bacteriophages have been employed in the development of numerous advanced biotechnological tools, which has led to the emergence of multiple approaches utilizing them for improved cancer diagnostics and novel therapeutic strategies. Unlike other recently published reviews in this field, this paper does not emphasize technological principles or focus on specific cancer type. Instead, we provide a broad overview of innovative concepts and highlight recent advances in the use of bacteriophages in anti-cancer research. In particular, we discuss their roles in: (i) early cancer diagnosis and detection of tumorigenic mutations, (ii) elimination of bacteria that promote carcinogenesis and modulation of the microbiome influencing tumor growth, (iii) development of anti-cancer vaccines, (iv) modulation of cancer-related immune responses, (v) targeted delivery of anti-cancer drugs, and (vi) genetic modification of cancer cells through therapeutic DNA delivery.
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