Isolation and Characterization of Phage As a Possible Treatment Agent for Caries

Overview

Journal Viruses

Publisher MDPI

Specialty Microbiology

Date 2021 Jun 2

PMID 34063251

Citations 20

Authors

Hadar Ben-Zaken

Reut Kraitman

Shunit Coppenhagen-Glazer

Leron Khalifa

Sivan Alkalay-Oren

Daniel Gelman

Gilad Ben-Gal

Nurit Beyth

Ronen Hazan

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

is a key bacterium in dental caries, one of the most prevalent chronic infectious diseases. Conventional treatment fails to specifically target the pathogenic bacteria, while tending to eradicate commensal bacteria. Thus, caries remains one of the most common and challenging diseases. Phage therapy, which involves the use of bacterial viruses as anti-bacterial agents, has been gaining interest worldwide. Nevertheless, to date, only a few phages have been isolated against . In this study, we describe the isolation and characterization of a new phage, termed SMHBZ8, from hundreds of human saliva samples that were collected, filtered, and screened. The SMHBZ8 genome was sequenced and analyzed, visualized by TEM, and its antibacterial properties were evaluated in various states. In addition, we tested the lytic efficacy of SMHBZ8 against in a human cariogenic dentin model. The isolation and characterization of SMHBZ8 may be the first step towards developing a potential phage therapy for dental caries.

Citing Articles

Cariogenic Microbiota and Emerging Antibacterial Materials to Combat Dental Caries: A Literature Review.

Cao J, Ma Q, Shi J, Wang X, Ye D, Liang J Pathogens. 2025; 14(2).

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Saliva-acquired pellicle inspired multifunctional gargle with wet adhesion, photodynamic antimicrobial, and In situ remineralization properties for dental caries prevention.

Shi J, Qi X, Ran Y, Zhou Q, Ding Y, Li L Bioact Mater. 2025; 47:212-228.

PMID: 39906646 PMC: 11790425. DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.01.008.

Phage therapy as an alternative strategy for oral bacterial infections: a systematic review.

Zhu M, Hao C, Zou T, Jiang S, Wu B BMC Oral Health. 2025; 25(1):44.

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Evaluation of residual carious dentin detection methods after cavity preparation: a randomized clinical trial.

Abba H, Idon P, Udoye C, Ikusika O BMC Oral Health. 2024; 24(1):1452.

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Findings and methodologies in oral phageome research: a systematic review.

Chen X, Zou T, Ding G, Jiang S J Oral Microbiol. 2024; 16(1):2417099.

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