Inflammation, toxicity, and apoptosis reducing potential of bacteriophage Ariobarzanes on intestinal cells infected with Salmonella Typhimurium

The emergence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria has urged researchers to find alternatives or adjunct therapies, such as bacteriophages or phages. This study aimed to investigate the capabilities of Salmonella Typhimurium-specific phage Ariobarzanes in reducing cytotoxicity, invasion, and induction of necrosis and apoptosis caused by Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) ATCC 14,028 infection in the human small intestinal cell line Caco-2. For this purpose, cytotoxicity tests were performed, and the production of inflammatory cytokines interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis factor -alpha (TNF-α) was investigated in phage-treated versus non-treated samples (for 6-hour or 16-hour). The results indicate the success of Ariobarzanes in reducing cytotoxicity in a dose dependently, completely inhibiting Salmonella spp. invasion of Caco-2 cells, reducing Salmonella-induced apoptosis, and necrosis, and also reducing the production and secretion of cytokines IL-8, and TNF-α compared to the bacterial control treatment. Therefore, Ariobarzanes can be introduced as a potential candidate for controlling S. Typhimurium in the agriculture, food, and/or pharmaceutical industries.