Central Connecticut State University Acne is a multifactorial and polymorphic disease of sebaceous follicles, affecting teenagers and adults. One of the major factors in acne pathogenesis is Propionibacterium acnes , part of the normal human microflora. The bacteria disturb the lining of the follicle, breaking down trapped sebum and inducing inflammation. Various therapies are available for treating acne, including retinoids, steroids, and antibiotics. There are drawbacks to each of these, especially antibiotics, since there has been an increase in resistant strains.
Phage therapy has several advantages over antibiotic therapy.
Unlike antibiotics, phage are specific for one species of bacteria. In addition, the concentration of phage increases during therapy at the point of application, allowing the phage to kill all the disease-causing bacteria. We have isolated a large number of strains of P. acnes , and several strains of phage which kill subsets of that strain bank. We are currently isolating mutants of these phages with exclusively lytic capabilities and broad spectrum of virulence. The dysentery produced by infection with Shigella flexneri results from the expression of virulence genes located on a large plasmid, an auxiliary chromosome separate from the main Shigella chromosome.