Jetta, a beluga at Mystic Aquarium, received bacteriophage therapy for pneumonia caused by multidrug-resistant E. coli after antibiotics proved mostly ineffective. More than a year later, her team has found no evidence of recurrence or side effects.
The treatment is described as the first use of bacteriophages to treat a marine mammal. The viruses were selected to target Jetta’s E. coli strain. Treatment was delivered in several ways, including through a nebulizer made specially for a beluga’s blowhole; Jetta was trained to swim to the pool edge and inhale three times daily.
Mystic Aquarium veterinarian Molly Martony plans to present the case at the University of Florida’s Phage Across One Health Symposium next month. She and university partners are preparing the research for publication. Martony said the inhaled delivery method may be worth exploring in human medicine for multidrug-resistant infections.
