Euroscicon, United Kingdom
20th Jan 2012
9:00 – 9:45 Registration 9:45 – 10:00 Introduction by the Chair: Professor George Salmond, University of Cambridge, UK 10:00 – 10:20 How bacteria survive viralinfection: anti-phage abortive infection systems Tim Blower, University of Cambridge, UK Bacteria, outnumbered ten-to-one by their viral parasites, bacteriophages, have generated many bacteriophage-resistance mechanisms. One class, the abortive infection systems, induce premature host cell death upon bacteriophage infection. By committing this 'altruistic suicide', the host cell destroys the invading bacteriophage and protects the clonal population. The ToxIN abortive infection system was recently identified on a plasmid of the Gram negative plant pathogen, Erwinia carotovora. Crystallographic analysis has shown that ToxIN forms a stable protein-RNA complex, with ToxN acting as a toxic endoribonuclease. Work is ongoing to understand how bacteriophages activate and, in some cases, subvert this novel abortive infection system. 10:20 – 10:40 Streptomycete phage integrases: from fundamental science to translational exploitation Professor Maggie Smith, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Scotland 10:40 – 11:00 High Yield Phage Purification with Monolith Chromatography
Mr John Creedy, Progressive Research Systems Ltd, Cambridge, UK (morning talk) Viruses and phages present a challenge for chromatographic purification. They are typically excluded from traditional particulate media, due to their size. Polymeric CIM-monolith materials allow virus particles direct access to internal binding sites by convectional/pumped laminar flow. Avoiding diffusional mass transport, monoliths promote fast, efficient adsorption/desorption to monolith ion exchangers essentially independent of flow rate. Fast, high titre, high yield purifications can be achieved from crude preparations at all scales. Throughpores (mean diameter 1.5um) allow unimpeded access to large nanoparticles and pore morphology ensures laminar flow with no dead-end pores. This delivers high capacity for large particles with high yield. 11:00 – 11:05 Speakers’ photo 11:05 – 11:30 Mid-morning break and Poster Viewing 11:30 – 11:50 Nature and exploitation of phages for pathogenic anaerobes Dr Martha Clokie, University of Leicester, UK 11:50 – 12:10 TBC Patrick Hole, Nanosight, UK
12:10 – 13:10 Lunch and Poster Viewing 13:10 – 14:10 Question and Answer Session Delegates will be asked to submit questions to a panel of experts. Questions can be submitted before the event or on the day 14:10 - 14:30 Phage-based diagnostics: current and future Dr Cath Rees, University of Nottingham, UK 14:30 - 14:50 Challenges and Successes in Bacteriophage Formulation for Topical and Transdermal Delivery Brendan F Gilmore, Biofilm Research Group, School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast In the past decade significant advances have been made in order to translate bacteriophage therapeutics from the laboratory to the clinic. These have ranged from improved isolation and characterisation, demonstration of synergy with conventional antimicrobials and improved clinical trial design and analysis. Despite this, significant formulation challenges exist in the development of appropriate phage-delivery systems, challenges which will need to be addressed in order to provide delivery of effective phage therapeutics. Current studies typically describe the application of simple aqueous bacteriophage formulations, however, stability and storage of bacteriophages in standard dosage forms has received less attention. In this presentation, the development of a novel polymeric phage delivery platform for topical and transdermal applications will be discussed. The ongoing studies in our group, using T4 phage as a model bacteriophage, have examined the formulation and long term stability of T4 phage in various polymeric carriers, examining the role of pH, temperature, ionic strength and polymer composition on phage stability and aggregation. Finally, the successful transdermal delivery of viable T4 bacteriophage using novel polymeric hydrogel microneedle arrays in an in vivo rat model will be discussed 14:50 - 15:10 To be confirmed 15:10 – 15:40 Afternoon Tea/Coffee and Poster Viewing 15:40 – 16:00 The potential of phage therapy in an animal model of P. aeruginosa pulmonary infection |