Computational host range prediction

The rapid emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance across the globe have prompted the usage of bacteriophages in a variety of applications. In order to effectively guide the application of bacteriophages, information about their host ranges - that is the bacterial strains or species that a bacteriophage can successfully infect and kill - is essential. Utilizing broad-spectrum (polyvalent) Gordonia bacteriophages with experimentally validated host ranges, we benchmarked the performance of several recently developed computational host range prediction tools that provide a promising and highly scalable supplement to traditional, but laborious, experimental procedures.