Introduction to Phage

Mycobacteriophage are viruses that specifically infect mycobacteria, a genus of bacteria that includes pathogens known to cause serious diseases, such as tuberculosis. They do this by attaching to specific receptors on bacterial cell walls, and injecting their genetic material. Some of these phages can integrate their genomes into the host genome, while others cannot (mainly due to differences in genetic composition). Once the genome has been injected into the bacterial host, it takes control of the bacterial cell's machinery, including ribosomes and proteins, in order to produce new phage progeny. The accumulation of viral particles along with endotoxins results in the lysis, or bursting, of the host bacterium. These phage particles then find new hosts in their surroundings, and repeat this parasitic cycle.
Despite their simple appearance, bacteriophage are the most numerous and diverse entities on the planet. Since their identification and isolation in the early 1900s, these remarkable organism have contributed to our knowledge of mycobacterium and led towards the development of effective therapeutic tools for mycobacterial diseases. Their ability to infect and kill bacteria is being applied towards the development of inexpensive and rapid therapeutic and diagnostic tools, such as the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis in humans, an infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis.