Could a virus be the cure? Phage-hunters search contaminated waters for bacteria-targeting viruses

The river is the heart of the Nyagacho area of Kericho, Kenya, in more ways than one. Flowing through the center of the settlement, it’s a hub of community activity where people gather to bathe, wash clothes and water cattle. The river also receives an inflow of wastewater, leaving sections of the waterway contaminated and teeming with potentially harmful germs. While most would recognize these polluted water sources as a health hazard and steer clear, infectious disease researchers Martin Georges and Moses “Musa” Gachoya seek them out to try to find helpful bacteriophages that can combat antibiotic-resistant superbugs.