Engineered bacteriophage-based bioimaging Technology: Development and applications.

Engineered bacteriophages (phages) have emerged as powerful and versatile tools for bioimaging, owing to their natural specificity for bacterial targets and their amenability to functional modification. This review summarizes recent advances in the development and application of phage-based imaging probes, with a particular focus on surface functionalization techniques and genetic engineering strategies used to construct functional phage imaging agents. These engineered phage probes have been applied across diverse imaging modalities, including fluorescence, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear imaging, near-infrared (NIR) optical imaging, and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), etc. and have been utilized to enable highly sensitive detection of bacterial pathogens, improved diagnosis of infectious diseases, and monitoring of tissue engineering processes. Despite these innovations, critical challenges remain in ensuring robust target specificity, precise control of labeling stoichiometry, and favorable biocompatibility. Addressing issues such as non-specific probe binding, signal quenching, and immunogenicity will be crucial to fully realize the potential of phage-based bioimaging. Looking ahead, this review discusses future directions for next-generation phage imaging platforms with enhanced specificity, multiplexed functionality, and improved translational potential for clinical diagnostics.