Phages, as alternatives to antibiotics, edge into veterinary realm

Jeroen De Buck's years-long effort to find a treatment for a fatal affliction in cattle called Johne's disease recently took a twist. The veterinary microbiologist and his team spent months, partly through the harsh Canadian winter, collecting dung, soil, wastewater, milk and bedding from calf pens at a dozen dairy farms in Alberta.

The organisms he sought are bacteriophages — or phages for short —  a subset of viruses that infect and kill bacteria.

This story was published on May 15, 2025.