Bacteria killer

Martin Heydon, Minister of State at Ireland's Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, learned about research aimed at improving pig health and advancing an understanding of beneficial viruses. The study is funded by the US-Ireland Research and Development Partnership, a tripartite collaboration between the USDA and its equivalents in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

• The delegation was invited to check out a project seeking new treatments for Streptococcus suis, a bacterial pathogen of pigs that causes pneumonia, arthritis, skin lesions, and even death.
• There is currently no effective way to prevent S. suis infections. It's hard to wipe out because it's harbored in the tonsils and lymph nodes, and can infect humans who work closely with pigs.
• But it’s hoped that the treatment will be applicable to other pathogens too.

Even though antibiotics do work, the rise of resistant bacteria inspired scientists to look for alternative treatments – and they're considering using viruses to combat the bacterium.

• The goal is to harness and employ phages – viruses that are able to infect and even kill bacteria.
• The DNA code of the viruses that enables them to kill bacteria is being studied and will hopefully be used to engineer probiotic bacteria that should, like the viruses, be able to kill S. suis.