Acinetobacter phages use distinct strategies to breach the capsule barrier.

ABSTRACT: Acinetobacter baumannii is an opportunistic pathogen that is a growing threat in hospital settings due to its alarmingly high rates of antibiotic resistance. Alternative therapies are urgently needed to manage the growing burden of untreatable A. baumannii infections. Phage therapy is a promising avenue that has already seen some success in isolated compassionate-use cases, including the famous "Patterson case". Bacterial surface structures are the first determinants of susceptibility to phage infection and play a major role in phage host range. Most A. baumannii strains produce a protective capsule that is highly diverse both in structure and composition, and provides the first immunity barrier against phages. Here, we perform a detailed molecular characterization of three recently isolat

SUBMITTER: McCalla AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12507263 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature