LH01-myoviridae
Synopsis of LH01-myoviridae
LH01-Myoviridae refers to a specific bacteriophage (a virus that infects and destroys bacteria) belonging to the Myoviridae family—a group of tailed, double-stranded DNA phages known for their strong lytic activity. Bacteriophage LH01 is often studied for its ability to target and kill pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli (E. coli), including enterohemorrhagic and multidrug-resistant forms. As antibiotic resistance continues to rise, phages like LH01 are being explored as powerful alternatives or adjuncts to traditional antibiotics.
Unlike temperate phages, which may integrate into a bacterial genome and remain dormant, lytic phages such as LH01 quickly infect, replicate within, and lyse their bacterial hosts—making them suitable for phage therapy and food safety applications. LH01-Myoviridae has been studied for its stability in gastrointestinal conditions, ability to selectively reduce harmful E. coli, and its potential use in both human therapeutics and agricultural biocontrol (e.g., treating livestock or sanitizing food surfaces).
It may be included in emerging probiotic-phage combination products (also known as synbiotics or phagebiotics) that aim to reduce pathogenic bacterial populations while preserving or enhancing beneficial microbiota.
Historical Use:
While LH01 itself is a modern isolate, the concept and use of bacteriophages dates back to the early 20th century. Bacteriophages were first discovered independently by Frederick Twort (1915) and Félix d’Hérelle (1917), who observed invisible agents capable of destroying bacteria. D’Hérelle coined the term "bacteriophage" (meaning “bacteria eater”) and immediately began using phages therapeutically—particularly against dysentery and cholera—long before the discovery of antibiotics.
Phage therapy became a widely researched and practiced field, especially in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. In places like Georgia and Russia, phages were developed into medicines for treating bacterial infections and are still in use today. During this era, phages like LH01 would have been identified for specific bacterial targets such as E. coli, which commonly causes gastrointestinal and urinary tract infections.
However, with the advent of antibiotics in the 1940s, phage therapy fell out of favor in the West—until the recent resurgence driven by antibiotic resistance and interest in precision microbiome interventions. LH01 and similar Myoviridae phages now represent the cutting edge of bacteriophage science, with applications ranging from personalized infection treatment to agriculture, water purification, and even skin microbiome modulation.
Today, phages like LH01-Myoviridae are undergoing clinical and preclinical evaluation as part of a global effort to reclaim viral therapy for precision, bacteria-targeted medicine—building on a century-old discovery now revitalized by modern genomic tools and microbial ecology.
LH01-myoviridae is used for these health conditions
Abscesses (Scientific)
Antibiotics (alternatives to) (Scientific)
Blood Poisoning (Scientific)
Boils (Scientific)
Infection (Scientific)
Infection (bacterial) (Scientific)
Staph Infections (Scientific)
