The science behind the great indian river GANGA

BACTERIOPHAGES AND THE MYSTERY OF THE GANGES

Above: Ganges River, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India (Babasteve)

Did you know? Bacteriophages (or phages)

are viruses that infect bacteria and replicate

within them.

The Ganges is a lifeline to millions of people in India and 

the backbone of spiritual life for the country’s Hindu majority.

 Many believe the river is self-cleansing andhas healing 

powers. Indeed, its water has demonstratedbactericidal

 activity(the ability to kill bacteria).

 And although this mystery is still unfolding,

 it appears to be related to bacteriophages (or phages).

 And theseviruses that infect and kill bacteria could

 provide a useful alternative toantibiotics in the form

 of phage therapy.

Map showing the course of the River Ganges,
 as well as its major tributaries and distributaries.

Known as the national river of India, the Ganges 

originates in the westernHimalayas and flows 

to Bangladesh. The river has great spiritual significance

 to Hindus, who worship it as the goddess Ganga. 

Its water, popularly called“Ganga Jal”, 

is considered sacred and is used in many religious rituals.

Did you know? Phage therapy is the use of 
bacteriophages to treat pathological 
(disease-causing) infections caused by bacteria.

From a scientific perspective, the mysterious claim
 that the Ganges possesses self-cleansing and
 healing properties is particularly interesting.
 In fact, the riverhas been shown to have antibacterial
 properties and it can retain high amountsof dissolved 
oxygen, even in extremely polluted conditions.

As early as 1896, the British bacteriologist Ernest Hankin 

studied the bactericidal properties of Ganges water. 

He found that colonies of cholera bacteria that thrived

 in tap water quickly died in Ganges water. He pursued

 his experiment by using

 boiled Ganges water and filtered Ganges water.

 To his surprise, while the

filtered water continued to show an antibacterial effect,

 the boiled water did not.

 This clearly indicated that the factor responsible

for the water’s bactericidal

properties was heat labile (altered by heat) but 

not not filterable, at least not

with the porcelain Pasteur filters Hankin used in

 his experiment.

Structure of a typical bacteriophage. 
Click image to enlarge (GrahamColm)

Two decades later, a Canadian microbiologist identified

 the factor that may explain the mystery of the Ganges. 

In 1916, Felix d'Herelle was working at the Institut Pasteur

 in Paris when he discovered phages. Phages are composed

 of proteins that trap genetic material.

They also exhibit properties—difficult to filter and heat labile—

that correspond perfectly to what Hankin had observed in

 Ganges water.

Did you know? The Ganges is popularly known
as the Ganga, from its name in Hindi.

This suggests the Ganges is heavily populated with phages.
 They are essentially harmless to humans because they are
highly strain specific.
 For example, phages that infect the cholera bacterium can
 only infect the cholera bacterium and no other bacteria.
 Of course, the fact these phages often target bacteria that
cause deadly diseases is an added bonus.

Phages are also a potential tool for treating diseases

 caused by bacteria.

In particular, their specificity is something antibiotics 

do not possess.

 In other words, unlike antibiotics,

 phages can neatly kill the pathogen without harming the

natural flora also present in the body

 (like the lactobacilli in your gut, which aid digestion).

The development of phage therapy was attempted in

 the United

States during the early 20th century. However, 

it was discontinued

because of a limited understanding of phages,

 as well as the arrival of cheaper antibiotics.

Did you know? The term bacteriophage combines

 “bacteria” and the Greek word phagein, which means

 “to devour”.

Today, phage therapy is once again being researched
at a time when antibiotic resistance is becoming a 
major concern, Many strains of

 bacteria have become resistant to antibiotics because
 of the misuse or overuse of the antibiotics themselves. 
Therefore, the potential of phage
therapy as a replacement for antibiotics is very promising.

From the Ganges’ longstanding reputation for self-cleansing
to a potential solution for antibiotic resistance, phages and 
phage therapy bridge the gap
between an ancient belief and modern medicine. What do you think?
Do you think phage therapy could eventually replace antibiotics?