Whole Genome sequencing of Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteriophages

Klebsiella pneumoniae is well known as a common cause of multidrug-resistant nosocomial infections. In the mid-1980s, new hypervirulent variants of Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) causing primary pyogenic liver abscess with frequent metastatic spread were described. A distinguished feature of many hvKP strains is hypermucoviscosity associated with the overproduction of the constitutive capsule or with the synthesis of extracapsular polysaccharide. Bacteriophages have been considered as a tool to control bacteria covered with polysaccharide capsules. This is associated with producing of the specific enzymes, depolymerases by many bacteriophages. These enzymes are able to destroy the capsular polysaccharides, thereby allowing the phage adsorption to the outer membrane receptor and the phage DNA penetration into the bacterial cell. This project plans to sequence the genomes of new phages with lytic activity against multidrug resistance and hypermucoviscous K. pneumoniae strains. These phages are potential sources of depolymerase genes.