{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T22:58:15Z","timestamp":1785452295726,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785369600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785369600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"funder":[{"name":"Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universit\u00e4t, Frankfurt am Main"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["link.springer.com"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["BMC Microbiol"],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    The clinical implementation of mycobacteriophages is hampered by the lack of standardized\n                    <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                    methods and inconsistent host range results, limiting reliable assessment of their therapeutic potential. Nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections are frequently difficult to treat, emphasizing the urgent need for alternative or adjunctive strategies to antibiotics. To facilitate reproducible translational research, a detailed and systematic understanding of\n                    <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                    assay conditions is essential. Here, we comprehensively evaluated commonly used liquid and solid media for their suitability in supporting growth of multiple NTM strains and subsequent phage application. We compared bacterial growth kinetics, aggregation tendencies, and the efficiency of phage-induced lysis, including plaque formation, across three liquid media and corresponding solid agars. Our results demonstrate that Middlebrook-based media and agar consistently support robust NTM growth, reduce bacterial clumping, and enable reproducible detection of phage activity, outperforming TSB-based alternatives despite higher cost and labor requirements. These findings provide a standardized framework for\n                    <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                    NTM cultivation and phage testing, which is critical for reliable evaluation of host range, infection dynamics, and the development of mycobacteriophage-based therapies.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T05:51:18Z","timestamp":1785390678000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Targeting nontuberculous mycobacteria with phages: optimization of in vitro host range assays"],"prefix":"10.1186","volume":"26","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3739-9601","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tobias","family":"Weirauch","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eva","family":"Br\u00fcgger","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kai","family":"Litzius","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Maria J. G. T.","family":"Vehreschild","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Silvia M.","family":"W\u00fcrstle","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Simone C.","family":"Lieberknecht-Jouy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"reference":[{"issue":"3","key":"5452_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"325","DOI":"10.1055\/s-0038-1651491","volume":"39","author":"J Adjemian","year":"2018","unstructured":"Adjemian J, Daniel-Wayman S, Ricotta E, Prevots DR. Epidemiology of nontuberculous mycobacteriosis. Semin Respir Crit Care Med. 2018;39(3):325\u201335. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1055\/s-0038-1651491.","journal-title":"Semin Respir Crit Care Med"},{"issue":"17","key":"5452_CR2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"100133","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jctube.2019.100133","volume":"16","author":"AJ Ghio","year":"2019","unstructured":"Ghio AJ, Smith GS, DeFlorio-Barker S, Messier KP, Hudgens E, Murphy MS, et al. Application of diagnostic criteria for non-tuberculous mycobacterial disease to a case series of mycobacterial-positive isolates. J Clin Tuberc Other Mycobact Dis. 2019;16(17):100133. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.jctube.2019.100133.","journal-title":"J Clin Tuberc Other Mycobact Dis"},{"issue":"8","key":"5452_CR3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2541","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm9082541","volume":"9","author":"K To","year":"2020","unstructured":"To K, Cao R, Yegiazaryan A, Owens J, Venketaraman V. General overview of nontuberculous mycobacteria opportunistic pathogens: Mycobacterium avium and Mycobacterium abscessus. J Clin Med. 2020;9(8):2541. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/jcm9082541.","journal-title":"J Clin Med"},{"issue":"2","key":"5452_CR4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"96","DOI":"10.3390\/biology10020096","volume":"10","author":"S Saxena","year":"2021","unstructured":"Saxena S, Spaink HP, Forn-Cun\u00ed G. Drug resistance in nontuberculous mycobacteria: mechanisms and models. Biology (Basel). 2021;10(2):96. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/biology10020096.","journal-title":"Biology (Basel)"},{"key":"5452_CR5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Diagnosis and treatment of disease caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria. This official statement of the American Thoracic Society was approved by the Board of Directors, March 1997. Medical Section of the American Lung Association. 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BMC Microbiol. 2009;9:148. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1186\/1471-2180-9-148.","journal-title":"BMC Microbiol"}],"container-title":["BMC Microbiology"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/content\/pdf\/10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3","content-type":"text\/html","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/content\/pdf\/10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T22:05:22Z","timestamp":1785449122000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"references-count":28,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,12]]}},"alternative-id":["5452"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1186\/s12866-026-05452-3","relation":{},"ISSN":["1471-2180"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1471-2180","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"assertion":[{"value":"18 February 2026","order":1,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"22 July 2026","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"30 July 2026","order":3,"name":"first_online","label":"First Online","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"This study did not involve human participants, human data, or human biological materials. The experimental work was conducted exclusively using bacterial strains and bacteriophages. Therefore, ethics approval and informed consent to participate were not required in accordance with institutional and national guidelines.","order":1,"name":"Ethics","label":"Ethics approval and consent to participate","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Declarations"}},{"value":"Not applicable. This study did not involve human participants, human data, or identifiable personal information requiring consent for publication.","order":2,"name":"Ethics","label":"Consent for publication","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Declarations"}},{"value":"T.W. declares having received travel and hotel expenses from Gilead Sciences and Shionogi Seiyaku. E.B., K.M.L., S.W. and S.C.L.J. have nothing to disclose. M.J.G.T.V. has received research grants from MSD, Heel, Roche and Tillotts. She also received consulting fees from GILEAD, Tillotts, Pfizer, Bioaster, GSK, Ecraid, Eumedica, Bactolife and PAION. Furthermore, she received speaker fees from Akademie f\u00fcr Infektionsmedizin, Astra Zeneca, bioMerieux, Biotest, COCS GmbH, DGI, European Society of Neurogastroenterology, Falk Foundation, FomF GmbH, GILEAD, GSK, Helios Kliniken, Hessisches Landessozialgericht, Infektio Forum, Janssen Cilag GmbH, Klinikum Kasseln, Landes\u00e4rztekammer Hessen, LMU-Kliniken, MSD, Pfizer, Streamed up, St. Vincent Hospital and Tillotts.","order":3,"name":"Ethics","label":"Competing interests","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Declarations"}}],"article-number":"682"}}