Biocontrol strategies of antibiotic-resistant, highly pathogenic bacteria and fungi with potential bioterrorism risks: Bacteriophage in focus

Abstract

There are many international attempts to control pathogenic antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This has been done in many ways, such as using chemical methods that rely on laboratory-created compounds or using natural methods. Natural techniques depend on vital sources derived from natural sources, such as microbes or plant extracts, or use of the same natural source as a parasitic microbe on pathogenic bacteria. The aim of the article was to focus on natural sources of antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria and fungi. We studied antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella sp., Shigella sp., Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Listeria monocytogenes, and highly pathogenic bacteria with potential bioterrorism risks, such as Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis, Francisella tularensis, Brucella sp. and Bulkholderia mallei, in addition to other microbes. We also studied methods to biologically resist these antibiotic-resistant bacteria using extracts from natural sources or microbial parasites. Nonetheless, we focused on bacteriophage in particular as it has the potential of applications as bacteriophage and as alternatives to antibiotics for plants, animals, humans and useful microbes with the benefits of using bacteriophage in biocontrol. We conclude that the use of those stregies can be ecofriendly, non-toxic or hazardous to human beings.