Emerging anti-infective strategies based on host regulation and host–pathogen interactions
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance continues to worsen, posing a major challenge to the prevention and management of infections caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria. Although conventional antibiotics, antimicrobial nanomaterials, and phage therapy have expanded the available antimicrobial options, their application remains constrained by selective pressure for resistance, biosafety concerns, narrow host range, and incomplete clinical translation. Strategies that target the host or the host–pathogen interface have therefore attracted increasing attention. Rather than relying exclusively on direct bacterial killing, these approaches seek to improve pathogen clearance by strengthening host defenses, calibrating harmful inflammation, restoring microbial homeostasis, attenuating bacterial virulence, or inducing protective immunity. This review synthesizes current evidence on host-directed therapy, dual pathogen–host targeting, immunomodulatory polysaccharides, and next-generation bacterial vaccines, with emphasis on their mechanisms, translational potential, and unresolved challenges. Collectively, these approaches may support the development of more sustainable interventions against emerging and multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
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BibTeX
@article{zhu2026emerging,
title = {{Emerging anti-infective strategies based on host regulation and host–pathogen interactions}},
author = {Jinxuan Zhu and Xinru Ren and Liu Wu and Zongyan Li and Zhigang Sun and Lujun Yan and Mingzhan Luo and Huahai Chen and Yeshi Yin},
journal = {Frontiers in Immunology},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3389/fimmu.2026.1952413},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.1952413},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Emerging anti-infective strategies based on host regulation and host–pathogen interactions
AU - Jinxuan Zhu
AU - Xinru Ren
AU - Liu Wu
AU - Zongyan Li
AU - Zhigang Sun
AU - Lujun Yan
AU - Mingzhan Luo
AU - Huahai Chen
AU - Yeshi Yin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/09
JO - Frontiers in Immunology
DO - 10.3389/fimmu.2026.1952413
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.1952413
AB - Antimicrobial resistance continues to worsen, posing a major challenge to the prevention and management of infections caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria. Although conventional antibiotics, antimicrobial nanomaterials, and phage therapy have expanded the available antimicrobial options, their application remains constrained by selective pressure for resistance, biosafety concerns, narrow host range, and incomplete clinical translation. Strategies that target the host or the host–pathogen interface have therefore attracted increasing attention. Rather than relying exclusively on direct bacterial killing, these approaches seek to improve pathogen clearance by strengthening host defenses, calibrating harmful inflammation, restoring microbial homeostasis, attenuating bacterial virulence, or inducing protective immunity. This review synthesizes current evidence on host-directed therapy, dual pathogen–host targeting, immunomodulatory polysaccharides, and next-generation bacterial vaccines, with emphasis on their mechanisms, translational potential, and unresolved challenges. Collectively, these approaches may support the development of more sustainable interventions against emerging and multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
SN - 1664-3224
ER -