IN THE hunt for weapons against bacteria that cause disease, doctors have
turned to their age-old adversaries—viruses.
Vincent Fischetti and his team at Rockefeller University in New York have
isolated an enzyme from a bacteriophage—a type of virus that infects
bacteria. The enzyme kills Streptococcus pneumoniae, a potentially
dangerous bacterium that lurks in the noses and throats of half the human
population.
Earlier this year, Fischetti’s team isolated another bacteriophage enzyme
that kills streptococci, which cause sore throats. The same method could also be
used to find enzymes that kill other bacteria. “Every bacterium has a
bacteriophage system,”…
