Engineered enzymatically active bacteriophage and methods for dispersing biofilms
AssigneesTrustees of Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
InventorsJames J Collins, Timothy Kuan-Ta Lu
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Abstract
The present invention is directed to engineered enzymatically active bacteriophages that are both capable of killing the bacteria by lysis and dispersing the bacterial biofilm because they have been also engineered to express biofilm-degrading enzymes, particularly dispersin B (DspB), an enzyme that hydrolyzes β-1,6-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, a crucial adhesion molecule needed for biofilm formation and integrity in Staphylococcus and E. coli, including E. coli K-12, as well as clinical isolates.
Claims10
A method of dispersing a bacterial biofilm on a surface comprising administering to said surface a genetically engineered lytic T7 bacteriophage wherein the bacteriophage comprises a nucleic acid encoding dispersin B enzyme operably linked to a strong promoter and a nucleic acid encoding a protein to enhance or expand infectivity and or replication capacity of the lytic T7 bacteriophage, wherein the nucleic acid encoding the protein to enhance or expand infectivity and or replication capacity of the lytic T7 bacteriophage encodes T3 1.2 protein.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.