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Habibi G H. Enzybiotics, a Promising Era in Confronting Bacteria in the Poultry Industry. J Altern Vet Med 2024; 7 (20) :1202-1211
URL: http://joavm.kazerun.iau.ir/article-1-147-en.html

Since the discovery of antibiotics, they have been used widely for disease control. Antibiotics were also found to be useful in growth promotion in the poultry industry. However, their overuse and misuse have led to bacterial resistance against them. Antibiotic resistance is a global issue that results in considerable health and economic losses. Marked antibiotic resistance against various antibiotics has been observed in poultry infections. To counteract the burdens of antibiotic resistance, various alternatives for antibiotics are being studied. These alternative approaches have also been subjects of interest in the poultry industry, as poultry infections result in dramatic economic loss, and in cases of zoonotic infections, the transmission of infection from chicken leads to dramatic health burdens in humans. Phage therapy, probiotics, and anti-microbial peptides administration are some examples of these alternative approaches. Another antibiotic alternative approach is called "enzybiotics". In enzybiotics, peptidoglycan hydrolases (endolysins) are used to degrade bacterial cell walls. These enzymes are mostly found in bacteriophages’ genomes because bacteriophages have to degrade the peptidoglycan layers of bacteria both to enter and exit their bacterial host. Bacterial genomes also contain some regions with peptidoglycan hydrolase properties which help bacteria in growth and division. The properties of various peptidoglycan hydrolases have been studied to find the more potent and applicable ones for future uses. Due to their advantages, endolysins are promising antibiotic alternatives. In this review, we will discuss the role of enzybiotics in the poultry industry. Also, endolysin advantages and limitations of their administration are discussed here.