Enzymes for anti-infective therapy: phage lysins.

Bacterial viruses (bacteriophages or phages) were first isolated 90 years ago and were envisaged early on as curative tools. Bacterial resistance to most available drugs has driven the attention of researchers to test the possibilities of using phages, and/or some of their gene products, as therapeutic agents. The peculiarities of cell-wall lytic enzymes, and recent achievements in using phage-coded lysins for the treatment of severe human infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria are most intriguing. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]