Nanochick wrote:
*snip*
] Moon Pie wrote:
(1667-1745)
] ] So, naturalists observe, a flea
] ] Has smaller fleas that on him prey;
] ] And these have smaller still to bite 'em;
] ] And so proceed ad infinitum.
]
] Actually, macrophages are cells in our immune system. It is
] true that there are viruses that infect bacteria called
] bacteriophages, and that there is research going on in using
] them as a replacement for antibiotics. The interesting thing
] is that before antibiotics were discovered, there was *major*
] research going on to see if bacteriophages could be used to
] treat bacterial infections. That research mostly dropped off
] the map when antibiotics came on the scene, but for the past
] few years, people have started to think think in that
] direction again due to antibiotic resistance. As for
] macrophages, I haven't heard of research going on in that area
] as a potential therapy, but if you have any information on
] that, I would love a link to it. Sorry...just had to add my
] .02 cents in as a biology major:)

Thank you for the correction. I read a print article recently about these things, and the reporter used the term 'macrophage' for 'bacteriophage', which confused me, but I assumed he knew better than me, and one had to sort out what kind of 'macrophage' (immune or viral) from context.
But yeah, research is up and running in Russia at least, with some interest internationally. They're isolating bacteriophages from sewage. This is highly relevant to me since I have a tuberculosis-like infection that takes years of antibiotic treatment to eliminate, while the right bacteriophage would home right in on those suckers.

RE: The super-bugs have arrived!