Week2 PP2

The researchers, Laurent Debarbieux et al reveal the effectivness of treating P. aeruginosa lung infections by using bacteriophages. The researches used mice as their test subjects, different primary colonization and chronic strains of the bacteria P. aeruginosa to infect the mice, as well as the bacteriophage they called PAK-P1. Their hypothesis was that if bacteriophages are effective in attacking only the bacteria, the bacteriophages will significantly reduce the bacteria in the victims and thus save them. The dependent variable was therefore the survival of the test subjects, the mice; and the independent variable is the amount of bacteriophages. The controls were infected mice not treated with any bacteriophages. Experimental evidence reveals that timing and dosage of bacteriophages mattered in saving the lives of the mice. Even though the research revealed bacteriophages' effectiveness in treatment in vitro, the researchers were questioning its effectiveness in vivo. The research performed is therefore significant in the medical field, possibly leading to medication that will use the virus to save humans infected by the lung bacteria, P. aeruginosa.