Steering the course: targeting and exploiting surface receptors in phage therapy

The global rise of antibiotic resistance highlights the urgent need for alternative therapeutics such as bacteriophages (phages). Phages exert selective pressure that can "steer" bacteria toward reduced pathogenicity, increased antibiotic susceptibility, or immune clearance. A receptor-focused steering strategy is especially powerful since many phage receptors are also critical for bacterial fitness and virulence. Effective therapy requires …