Targeting Foodborne Pathogens with Bacteriophages: Mechanisms, Applications, and Resistance

Area of Science:

• Food safety
• Microbiology
• Antimicrobial resistance

Background:

• Foodborne pathogens pose significant public health risks globally.
• Antimicrobial resistance exacerbates the challenge of controlling bacterial contamination in food systems.
• Persistent contamination occurs across animal, food-processing, and retail environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review bacteriophages as precision antimicrobials for controlling key foodborne bacteria.
• To summarize the biological mechanisms of phage-mediated bacterial control.
• To discuss the applications, challenges, and future directions for bacteriophage use in food safety.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of bacteriophage applications in food safety.
• Analysis of phage biology, including lytic cycles and host specificity.
• Examination of pre-harvest, post-harvest, and processing environment applications.
• Discussion of efficacy, delivery, formulation, regulatory, and scale-up challenges.

Main Results:

• Bacteriophages effectively target specific foodborne pathogens like Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, Campylobacter, and Vibrio.
• Phage efficacy is influenced by host range, bacterial resistance, food matrix, and formulation.
• Successful applications require rationally designed phage cocktails and rigorous safety screening.

Conclusions:

• Bacteriophages are promising adjuncts to existing food safety strategies, not standalone solutions.
• Wider implementation necessitates addressing challenges in validation, manufacturing, and regulatory approval.
• Phage integration requires careful consideration of context-dependent efficacy and potential for bacterial resistance.