Benjamin K. Chan (Yale University) explores how phages can steer bacterial evolution and restore antibiotic sensitivity.

Antimicrobial resistance is widely considered one of the greatest threats to modern medicine. As bacteria evolve to evade antibiotics, infections that were once easily treated are becoming increasingly difficult and sometimes impossible to cure.

A growing number of researchers believe the solution may lie in using evolution itself as a therapeutic tool.

Dr. Benjamin K. Chan, researcher at Yale University (USA), is developing an innovative strategy that combines bacteriophage therapy and evolutionary biology to control antibiotic-resistant pathogens. His work focuses on harnessing evolutionary trade-offs to push bacteria toward states that are less resistant, less virulent, and more susceptible to treatment.

Dr. Chan will present this approach during the international meeting Targeting Phage Therapy 2026, which will take place June 9–10, 2026 in Valencia, Spain, bringing together leading scientists working on the next generation of anti-infective strategies.

Using evolution against resistant bacteria

Traditional antibiotics aim to directly kill bacteria. However, bacteria rapidly evolve resistance, often rendering these drugs ineffective.

Dr. Chan’s research takes a different approach. Instead of fighting evolution, his work seeks to guide it.

Using bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, researchers can apply selective pressures that force pathogens to make evolutionary compromises. In many cases, when bacteria evolve resistance to a specific phage, they simultaneously lose key traits such as antibiotic resistance mechanisms or virulence factors.

This evolutionary trade-off can restore sensitivity to antibiotics or make pathogens significantly easier to control.

From laboratory discovery to clinical application

The research spans the entire translational spectrum from fundamental studies in evolutionary microbiology to real world clinical implementation.

Dr. Chan’s team investigates how phages can be discovered, engineered, and strategically applied to direct bacterial evolution. These insights are then translated into therapeutic strategies designed for patients suffering from multidrug-resistant infections, where conventional antibiotics are no longer effective.

By integrating laboratory research with clinical practice, this work illustrates how evolutionary principles can be transformed into practical anti-infective interventions.

A new paradigm in infectious disease treatment

The concept of evolution-guided therapy represents a significant shift in thinking. Rather than trying to eliminate pathogens outright, the goal is to reshape the evolutionary landscape in which bacteria operate.

By directing bacterial adaptation, researchers may be able to restore the effectiveness of existing antibiotics and create new therapeutic combinations involving phages.

As antimicrobial resistance continues to spread worldwide, strategies that leverage evolutionary biology could become a key component of future infectious disease medicine.

The question now facing researchers and clinicians is increasingly clear:

Can evolution, the very force that drives antibiotic resistance, become a powerful tool to defeat it?

Targeting Phage Therapy 2026
April 9-10, 2026
 – Valencia, Spain

www.phagetherapy-site.com