Caracterización fenotípica de bacteriófago frente a Enterococcus faecalis y Enterococcus faecium

Abstract

[ES] En el presente trabajo se pretende aislar fagos contra las bacterias Enterococcus faecalis y Enterococcus faecium, las cuales están presentando resistencia a varios tipos de antibióticos, provenientes de granjas avícolas, probar su eficacia y caracterizar fenotípicamente con la finalidad de poder usarlos como terapia frente a dichas bacterias. Se pudo identificar multirresistência a antibióticos por parte de diferentes cepas de Enterococcus. Con el siguiente estudio se pretende comprobar la eficacia de los fagos frente a diferentes cepas y serotipos in vitro, y poder determinar estabilidad a diferentes tratamientos térmicos y de pH.

[EN] The increasing emergence of multidrug-resistant strains of Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis in poultry farming constitutes a problem of utmost importance. These bacteria not only pose a significant challenge to public health but also to poultry production, leading to substantial economic losses. In this context, lytic phages emerge as a promising alternative to traditional antibiotics due to their high specificity and ability to co-evolve with their bacterial hosts. In the study, it was found that 95% of the Enterococcus isolates were multidrug-resistant strains. As for the phages, a total of 17 phages were isolated, which were effective against 79% strains. The lytic phages identified showed high stability in terms of survival across temperature ranges from -80 to 60°C and a pH range of 4 to 10. These results obtained in this study demonstrate the in vitro efficacy of bacteriophages against multidrug-resistant Enterococcus spp. strains. The high specificity of the phages and their ability to survive under adverse conditions position them as a potential tool for controlling these infections. However, it is necessary to characterize the bacteriophages at the genomic level and conduct in vivo tests to evaluate their efficacy under field conditions.