Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing global public health threat that is responsible for a significant number of deaths worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), bacterial AMR was directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019 and contributed to 4.95 million deaths. The misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals, and plants are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant pathogens. AMR affects countries in all regions and at all income levels, with low- and middle-income countries being most affected. AMR puts many of the gains of modern medicine at risk. It makes infections harder to treat and makes other medical procedures and treatments much riskier. The emergence of pandrug-resistant isolates for which no therapeutic options are available projects even a more grim future.

This immense challenge for our healthcare system requires a concerted global effort to address. The use of non-traditional approaches such as phages and phage lysins are increasingly put forward as a promising approach to help curb the global antimicrobial resistance crisis. The Belgian Phage Valley is spearheading these efforts. Belgium’s magistral phage legislation has opened the door to use approved phages in diverse therapies, illustrating how a highly functional triple helix between academia, government and companies makes a difference. Dr. Jean-Paul Pirnay and his team are at the forefront of phage therapy research and treatment in Belgium, which is taking place in a growing number of (university) hospitals. Sciensano, the federal agency of public health, controls each phage batch produced in Belgium on its safety. The adoption of ‘the Belgian Model’ across the EU’s pharmacopeia will pave the way for the crucial advancement of phage technology and the integration of phages for human therapy within the EU. Vésale Bioscience, a Belgian biotech, created in 2018, is committed to developing personalized phage-based therapies to combat multi-resistant bacterial infections. Phage lysins are the weapons of phages killing bacteria. Twenty years of Belgian research resulted in an advanced hit-to-lead development platform to develop phage lysins as pharmaceuticals. Obulytix, a Belgian spinoff created in 2023, aims to close the gap to the patients for phage lysin-based antibiotics based on these advances.