Characterization of Bacteriophages from Wastewater Sources on Streptococcus spp. Isolated from Biological Samples

Abstract: Bacteriophages are beneficial viruses that can destroy bacteria. By isolation and identification them, they can be used for therapeutic purposes. Background: In recent decades, inappropriate and excessive use of antibiotics has resulted in frequent antimicrobial resistance in bacteria. This phenomenon has created several problems in treatment of bacterial infections, leading to increased case mortalities and treatment expenses. A good solution to solve the problem is use of bacteriophages in bacterial treatment as these bacterial viruses include zero or minimum side-effects. The aims of this study were to isolate and identify bacteriophages from biological samples. Methods and findings: In this study, wastewater samples were used to characterize bacteriophages on streptococcal isolates from clinically isolated biological samples in Tehran, 2019-2020. Then, bacteriophages were comprehensively characterized using phenotypic and molecular methods of all samples collected from the hospital, 20 isolates belonged to viridans group and Group B streptococci. Overall, five bacteriophages were isolated from Streptococcus agalactiae strains with no host specificity since these bacteriophages lysed Enterococcus spp. as well. Conclusion: Since emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has created numerous medical problems, characterization of bacteriophage to use in infection treatment seems a promising solution.