#bacteriophage

• Actinophage — A bacterial virus (bacteriophage) structurally specialized in infecting and destroying bacteria of the order Actinomycetales (actinomycetes). These viruses play an essential ecological and industrial role, being utilized in genetic research or bacterial infection control, but can also pose a structural threat in the biotechnology industry if they jeopardize bacterial cultures used for antibiotic production.
• Bacteriophage — A virus that infects and destroys exclusively bacterial cells, utilizing their genetic mechanisms to replicate. In a medical and biochemical context, bacteriophages (or phages) represent an extremely specific and ecological alternative to antibiotics, used in phage therapy to combat drug-resistant superbugs.
• Bacteriophagy — A biological phenomenon consisting of the destruction, lysis, or phagocytosis of bacteria by specific viruses (bacteriophages) or by cells endowed with macrophage capacities. In a narrow sense, the process describes the dynamics of the lytic cycle in which entire bacterial populations are rapidly reduced under viral infection, playing a crucial role in the ecological regulation of microbial biomass.
• Bacteriophage therapy — A therapeutic method consisting of the controlled medical use of bacteriophages to combat and eradicate pathogenic bacterial infections within the organism. Also termed phage therapy, it represents a high-precision approach, as phages exclusively attack the target bacterial strain, sparing the beneficial microbiome and offering a viable solution against antibiotic-resistant bacteria.