BACTERIOPHAGES AS A THERAPEUTIC STRATEGY TO ADDRESS ANTIMICROBIAL BACTERIAL RESISTANCE: AN INTEGRATIVE LITERATURE REVIEW
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63330/aurumpub.068-021Keywords:
Bacterial infections, Bacterial susceptibility, Bacterial virulence, Combination therapy, Multidrug resistanceAbstract
This study analyzes the scientific evidence on the use of bacteriophages as a therapeutic strategy to address bacterial antimicrobial resistance, considering their potential applications, mechanisms related to antibacterial activity, and the main limitations to their clinical use. This is an integrative literature review with a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive approach, conducted between July and August 2026. Searches were conducted in the PubMed/MEDLINE, SciELO, Web of Science databases and the ScienceDirect platform, using the descriptors bacteriophages, phage therapy, antimicrobial resistance, antibiotic resistance, multidrug-resistant bacteria, and bacterial infections, combined using the Boolean operators AND and OR, according to the specific search strategies of each database. Articles published between 2021 and 2026, available in full text and in any language, provided that they could be translated, and directly related to the guiding question were considered. Literature reviews, review articles, letters to the editor, preprints, and studies unrelated to the research topic were excluded. A total of 16 studies comprised the final sample. The results demonstrate systemic, local, and inhaled applications, as well as the use of personalized phage cocktails and combinations of phages with antibiotics. Potential reductions in bacterial virulence, restoration of antimicrobial susceptibility, and limitation of the evolution of phage resistance are also observed. However, bacteriophage specificity, the need for individualized selection, protocol heterogeneity, and the still limited number of clinical trials constitute challenges to their application. It is concluded that phage therapy has potential as a complementary and personalized approach for multidrug-resistant infections, although its clinical consolidation depends on expanding the evidence regarding efficacy, safety, and therapeutic standardization.
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