Is Phage Therapy possible in Buruli ulcer disease?

There are two favourable points:

1°

Buruli ulcer is a severe necrotizing skin disease, characterized by the formation of large, painless necrotic ulcers in the absence of an acute inflammatory response.

Skin diseases are a good target for therapeutic treatments by phages.

key point : Phages are administrated by external application or by intradermal admnistration.

2°

Mycobacterium ulcerans in biopsy specimens has been described as an extracellular bacillus

Mycobacterium ulcerans induces the lysis of the infected host cells, becoming extracellular.

Mycobacterium ulcerans has been classified as an extracellular pathogen.

key point :Mycobacterium ulcer is vulnerable to attack by specific phages.







How we may decide when it is possible to initiate phage therapy in Buruli ulcer?




The probability of success must be higher if phage therapy initiates during the first phases of the disease.

In this work (and here)there are the guidelines ( drugs) to follow as potential indications.