Bacteriophage therapy has emerged as one of the most promising alternative antimicrobial approaches.
Currently, the global rise in antibiotic-resistant infections is escalating, with conventional antibiotics becoming increasingly ineffective and the threat of “superbugs” intensifying. This not only elevates mortality risks from common illnesses like pneumonia but also compromises medical procedures such as surgeries and chemotherapy due to infection concerns.
From August 19 to 23, 2025, the China Society of Biotechnology’s Phage Conference & the 8th China Phage Therapy Conference was held at Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University. A key highlight from the event was the announcement that bacteriophage therapy—a treatment specifically targeting bacteria—is emerging as one of the most promising alternative approaches to combat antimicrobial resistance.
As one of China’s most large-scale and influential annual academic conferences in the field of phage research and clinical applications, this year’s event focused on advancing the construction of a phage therapy system, offering new solutions to tackle the global public health challenge of antibiotic resistance.
During the conference, the 2025 National Key R&D Program “Frontier Biotechnology” launched two major phage-specific initiatives:
- “Development of Safe and Efficient Engineered Phage Therapies and Clinical Research,” led by Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University.
- “Research on Safe and Efficient Phage Preparation and Key Technologies for Clinical Treatment of Drug-Resistant Bacterial Infections,” led by Beijing University of Chemical Technology.
These core projects bring together government, industry, academic, and research forces, marking China’s transition from laboratory exploration to systematic clinical validation in phage therapy and significantly accelerating its industrialization and standardization.
As co-chair of the conference, Prof. Zhu Tongyu, Vice Dean of Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Director of the Fudan Phage Research Institute, and Academic Leader in Kidney Transplantation at Zhongshan Hospital, stated that global phage research has entered a phase of accelerated breakthroughs, with technologies such as AI screening continually expanding treatment boundaries. China has already achieved initial success in areas such as phage preparation development and personalized therapy. Regions like Shanghai have begun establishing integrated frameworks coordinating research, clinical application, preparation production, and regulatory oversight.
Concurrently with the conference, the second Phage Therapy “Seed Camp” was held, covering the entire workflow from fundamental phage theory, isolation and purification techniques, and quality testing methods to clinical application standards, regulatory policy analysis, and translational case studies. Through systematic training, the camp aims to propel phage therapy from theoretical exploration toward broader clinical frontiers in China.
Since its inception in 2018, the China Phage Therapy Conference has been held seven times, attracting nearly a thousand experts from countries including China, Belgium, the United States, and Georgia, as well as close to ten thousand participants.
Column Editor: Fan Liping
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