New antibiotic that kills drug-resistant bacteria found in technician's garden
Researchers found a new antibiotic in garden soil that targets drug-resistant bacteria by acting on the bacterial ribosome, reducing resistance likelihood, highlighting the need for novel antibiotics amid rising resistance.
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Researchers have discovered a new antibiotic molecule in soil samples from a technician's garden, which effectively targets a wide range of pathogenic bacteria, including drug-resistant strains, without harming human cells. This molecule, produced by a species of Paenibacillus, acts on the bacterial ribosome, a crucial component for protein synthesis, in a unique manner that reduces the likelihood of resistance development. The discovery highlights the potential of exploring common environments for novel antibiotics, especially as antibiotic resistance poses a significant global health threat, linked to 1.1 million deaths in 2021, with projections suggesting this could rise to 1.9 million by 2050. The research team, led by Gerry Wright, conducted extensive screening and analysis to identify the lasso-shaped peptides produced by the bacteria, which are known for their stability and robustness. This finding underscores the urgent need for new antibiotics in the face of rising resistance to existing treatments.
- A new antibiotic was discovered in a technician's garden, effective against drug-resistant bacteria.
- The antibiotic targets the bacterial ribosome, reducing the chance of resistance.
- The research highlights the importance of exploring everyday environments for new antibiotic sources.
- Antibiotic resistance is a growing global health crisis, linked to millions of deaths annually.
- The discovered molecule belongs to a group of robust lasso-shaped peptides.
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- There is a strong call to prohibit the use of novel antibiotics in the animal food industry to combat antimicrobial resistance.
- Historical context is provided, with references to past discoveries of antibiotics and the methods used to find them.
- Concerns are raised about the potential misuse of new antibiotics in developing countries, leading to over-prescription and renewed resistance issues.
- Commenters discuss the challenges and lack of financial incentives in developing new antibiotics, suggesting a need for better business models.
- Some express skepticism about the effectiveness of targeting the ribosome, noting that bacteria can still develop resistance through various mechanisms.
18 commentsThis is crucial because the misuse of antibiotics in livestock farming has been a major driver of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a global health crisis. When antibiotics are overused or improperly applied in animals, bacteria can evolve to become resistant, rendering these life-saving drugs ineffective for treating infections in humans and animals alike.
It has always been a perversity that life-saving reserve antibiotics were ever permitted to prop up the grotesque machinery of the modern food industry—a system built on global-scale animal cruelty.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirolimus
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9634974/
(Full disclosure - spent my PhD working with macrolides including this one. It's an amazing origin story for a compound...)
Antibiotic resistance is as much a political problem as a biology one.
And if you do spend the $1bn to get there, you end up like Achaogen. For anyone in this field, read this teardown of Achaogen: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-03452-0
I learned about it through this video, but there's a lot to explore beyond this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ig6ktJGTWk
Sure they do, by the general mechanism of preventing the drug from entering the bacterium and/or pumping it back out. Bacteria have general mechanisms for removing molecules they don't need.
This molecule is a peptide, so one mechanism for developing resistance would be evolution of a specific protease. Bacteria already have enzymes for breaking peptide bonds.
That's why I prefer Science Alert and their RSS'.
But will it kill humans too?
There's lots of antibiotics out there. Most of them will kill everything, including us, and we don't want them.
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