2018/10/29 by Trotereau, Angélina, Kern, Julie, Viardot, Antoine +2
#Alternative antibiothérapie #Colibacillose aviaire #Thérapie phagique
paper · doi:10.15454/1.5408046162092197e12
Avian pathogenic Escherichia coli strains (APEC) are the causative agent of avian colibacillosis. This extraintestinal disease is multifactorial and is the most common pathology in poultry farming. The control of the disease is currently based on a narrow-spectrum vaccine and antibiotic therapy. However, the appearance of APEC strains that are resistant to antibiotics requires the development of alternative or complementary therapeutic strategies. Among these alternatives, the therapeutic use of bacteriophages appears feasible and is currently being reassessed in Western countries. This work aims to study the feasibility of phagotherapy for the control of avian colibacillosis. The evaluation of phagotherapy in a context of avian colibacillosis has been addressed in a few studies. In the Infectious Diseases and Public Health unit of INRA Val de Loire, eleven different coliphages have been isolated from environmental samples. Among them, five are closely related to coliphage phAPEC8 whose therapeutic efficacy has been demonstrated in the treatment of infections in humans. We have shown that two of these phages were able to reduce embryo chicken mortality infected with an APEC strain. This result confirms the therapeutic potential of this phage family in veterinary and human medicine.