Can bacteria develop resistance against phages?
Antibiotic- and phage-resistant mutants of pathogenic bacteria can arise; however, if that occurs, there are at least two important factors that favor the development of new, therapeutically effective phage preparations. First, since phages have been co-evolving with bacteria for approximately 3.5 billion years, new lytic phages active against emerging phage-resistant mutants are constantly arising in the environment. Therefore, it should be possible to harness the power of this co-evolutionary process to ensure the continuous and ready availability/isolation of phages effective against mutant bacterial pathogens. Second, because the mechanisms by which antibiotics and phages kill bacteria are very different, phage therapy will not enhance the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which is a major concern with antibiotic therapy and with widespread use of antibiotics in agriculture. Thus, phages provide a much-needed additional modality for dealing with bacterial infections, incl
