Description du projet
Utiliser les gènes de virus mangeurs de bactéries pour éradiquer le contaminant alimentaire le plus répandu en Europe
Les virus et les bactéries ne cohabitent pas toujours en paix. Les bactériophages, ou «mangeurs» de bactéries, sont des virus qui infectent les bactéries. Ils détournent la machinerie de la cellule et la forcent à produire les nécessités virales plutôt que celles de la bactérie, tuant finalement la bactérie. Les bactériophages sont utilisés depuis des décennies pour traiter les infections bactériennes. Le projet AntiCamp, financé par l’UE, a mis au point des particules exclusives à base de phages qu’ils prévoient de retourner contre Campylobacter jejuni, le contaminant d’origine alimentaire le plus courant en Europe. La commercialisation de cette approche sûre, rentable et unique éliminera C. jejuni des aliments sans compromettre leur attrait.
Objectif
Campylobacter jejuni is the most common foodborne contamination in Europe, affecting millions of people, and costing billions of Euros. Current procedures to treat this contamination do not offer sufficient solutions. Here I present a unique approach to eradicate the pathogen from food by utilizing a cost-effective and safe product that does not alter the taste, texture, or appearance of the food. This innovation involves a spray composed of proprietary phage-based particles, which inject antibacterial genes into C. jejuni, thus killing the pathogen. Current phage-based technologies for decontaminating food encounter a major hurdle, because large-scale phage production in the fastidious and pathogenic C. jejuni strain is highly challenging. However, a major advantage of my product is that it can be prepared in a safe and easy-to-grow Escherichia coli host rather than in C. jejuni. Another significant advantage is that the technology producing the phages enables rapid and efficient modifications to the phage-based particles. This platform thus allows easy isolation and manufacture of cocktails of phage-based particles able to target a variety of pathogenic serotypes of C. jejuni. Furthermore, the proprietary particles all have a common scaffold, thus simplifying the regulation, safety, and route of manufacture. I propose a clear commercialization activity with a highly qualified team that I recruited, from both the scientific and commercialization fields. Developing and commercializing this product will provide a proof-of-concept to demonstrate the strength of this approach and will thus pave the way for additional innovative materials based on this technology.
Champ scientifique
Programme(s)
Régime de financement
ERC-POC - Proof of Concept GrantInstitution d’accueil
69978 Tel Aviv
Israël