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Motivation For Our Work

While most deaths caused by antibiotic resistance will occur in Africa and Asia, most phage experts are elsewhere in the world:

Predicted annual number of deaths in each region by 2050

Adapted fromTackling a Crisis for the Health and Wealth of Nations, 2014

Our Mission is therefore to bring phage expertise to the developing world

How We Work

We have two different types of programs:

Laboratory Training Workshops:

Teaching phage biology to scientists in developing countries

Product Development Projects:

Creating international, multidisciplinary teams that co-develop 

phage products for specific applications in developing countries

How to Isolate Phages

 

A layer of slightly opaque bacteria is grown in a petri dish, then suspected phage-containing samples (from sewage or elsewhere) are spotted onto the bacteria at different concentrations and incubated overnight.

 

The next day, phages are evident as tiny circular clear spots, indicating that the bacteria have been killed. Phages from these clear spots can be selected and propagated further.

Photo courtesy Dr. Martha Clokie

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