Unseen Allies: Skin-Dwelling Viruses that Kill Harmful Bacteria

BEaTS Research Radio's Podcast

In this episode, Celina Tanbari from the University of Ottawa interviews Dr. Adam Rudner about the fascinating world of bacteriophages—viruses that target and kill bacteria. Dr. Rudner is the coordinator of the University of Ottawa’s Phage Hunters program, a member of the SEA-PHAGES and SEA-GENES programs, and an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology. Dr. Rudner shares with us his expert opinion on a study that isolated bacteriophages from human skin to kill infection-causing bacteria. The discussion delves into the therapeutic potential of phages, their involvement in biofilms and lysogeny, and the challenges associated with utilizing phages in medicine.
This episode was produced and written by Emma Etchells Foisy, hosted by Celina Tanbari, and audio edited by Sam Rogers. Copyrights are reserved to BEaTS Research Radio and the University of Ottawa.
If you are interested in learning more about the paper we discussed today, you can find it through the following link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10117716/
Learn more: https://www.uottawa.ca/faculty-medicine/dr-adam-rudner
0:03 | BEaTS and host introduction.
0:38 | Introducing Dr. Rudner.
1:05 | What are bacteriophages?
1:41 | Phages as a possible solution to antibiotic-resistant bacteria
2:41 | What are biofilms, and how do they affect bacterial infections?
5:01 | Phage BE01 and how lysogeny can affect phage therapy.
8:52 | Phage BE04 and the potential of phages in replacing antibiotics.
10:55 | Squashing the stigma, phages only attack bacteria.
12:35 | Potential challenges with phage therapy.
14:08 | Dr. Rudner's take-home message.
14:36 | Thank yous and credits!
Soundtrack, Chillout by AudioCoffee | https://www.audiocoffee.net/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

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1. Unseen Allies: Skin-Dwelling Viruses that Kill Harmful Bacteria (00:00:00)

2. BEaTS and host introduction. (00:00:03)

3. Introducing Dr. Rudner (00:00:06)

4. What are bacteriophages? (00:01:05)

5. Phages as a possible solution to antibiotic resistant bacteria (00:01:41)

6. What are biofilms and how do they affect bacterial infections? (00:02:41)

7. Potential challenges with phage therapy (00:12:35)

8. Dr. Rudner's take home message (00:14:08)