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A new class of antibiotics to combat drug resistance
Called odilorhabdins, or ODLs, the antibiotics are produced by symbiotic bacteria found in soil-dwelling nematode worms that colonize insects for food. The bacteria help to kill the insect and, importantly, secrete the antibiotic to keep competing bacteria away. Until now, these nematode-associated bacteria and the antibiotics they make have been largely understudied.
[...] UIC's Alexander Mankin and Yury Polikanov are corresponding authors on the study and led the research on the antibiotic's mechanism of action. They found that ODLs act on the ribosome — the molecular machine of individual cells that makes the proteins it needs to function — of bacterial cells. "Like many clinically useful antibiotics, ODLs work by targeting the ribosome," said Polikanov, assistant professor of biological sciences in the UIC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, "but ODLs are unique because they bind to a place on the ribosome that has never been used by other known antibiotics."
Odilorhabdins, Antibacterial Agents that Cause Miscoding by Binding at a New Ribosomal Site (DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2018.03.001) (DX)
Meanwhile, an IBM research team has designed a polymer that can target at least five types of drug-resistant bacteria:
Earlier versions of synthetic polymers created problems because they essentially exploded the bacteria, releasing dangerous toxins into the bloodstream. While other scientists are researching different approaches to avoid resistance, most involve finding new molecules or proteins. IBM's synthetic molecule employs a completely different strategy.
It carries a negative electrical charge, so is drawn — like a magnet — to the positively charged surfaces of infectious cells. Then it binds to the cell, pierces the membrane, enters it and turns the inner liquid contents into solids. The new ninja polymer kills bacteria so quickly, they don't have time to mutate.
The eventual goal, said Hedrick, is to create an entirely new class of therapeutics that could treat a spectrum of infectious diseases with a single mechanism — without the onset of resistance.
Also at IBM.
A macromolecular approach to eradicate multidrug resistant bacterial infections while mitigating drug resistance onset (open, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-03325-6) (DX)
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Monday April 16 2018, @05:50PM (5 children)
So once humans have synthesized and used metric fucktons of bucketloads of these antibiotics and bacteria resistant to them start to thrive, will we have a sudden catastrophic drop in nematode populations, ruining soil fertility and causing eventual famine? If not, why not?
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by DannyB on Monday April 16 2018, @05:57PM (1 child)
Profitability is the #1 concern.
Second to that is the concern that, as long as it is profitable, that the famine occurs during your children's lifetime, and not in your lifetime.
Your children's generation will be able to elect politicians that can fix everything.
No happy.
Be worry.
God told us to take dominion over all the earth. Strip mine planet. Make it uninhabitable. Bless the harvest, as long as this "harvesting" of money is profitable.
The people who rely on government handouts and refuse to work should be kicked out of congress.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 16 2018, @06:22PM
Not only that, but the Invisible Hand Fairy will provide. Specifically, it will provide my kids with plenty of your kids wealth, because my kids will hold all the patents necessary to grow food in the post-nematode-apocalypse future.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday April 16 2018, @06:40PM (2 children)
Mankind and other species existed for millions of years before antibiotic resistant "superbugs" existed. They will probably survive after peak antibiotic, albeit with stricter quarantine procedures and more previously preventable deaths.
If a bacterium is resistant to every known antibiotic, does it have lower fitness compared to other bacteria? Maybe the problem will take care of itself.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 16 2018, @08:07PM
Given that nearly every class of antibiotics originated from some microbe found in nature, it's likely all the "superbug" genes had been out there also, since long before man. The only thing that changed, is humans spread the antibiotics outside their natural producers' habitats, making it beneficial for more microbial species to have the defences.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 17 2018, @04:14AM
That's a bit like saying mankind did well for such a long time before nuclear power plants... Antibiotic resistance was not an issue before antibiotics. We've seen many apocalyptic movies after a nuclear war for example. Sure, the mankind will survive. But it might be millions instead of billions. Which might not be a bad thing. It's just currently we're incredibly dependent on antibiotics. Many things now considered routine will become impossible. Having to do without antibiotics means literally going back to the dark Middle Ages. Pandemias will be back. Life will be as Hobbes put it "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short".
The fitness question is good thinking and the answer is yes, they will have slightly lower general fitness. However in an environment where antibiotics are present they will of course have absolute advantage. Usually how it's discovered that some patient has a resistant strain is by noticing it's not reacting to antibiotic A ... and B and C. So by that time they will have pretty much the sole dominion of the patient and have had quite a long time to do their thing. And then there might be no way or time to combat it left.
It's a good thing we've finally stumbled upon new things. I'm just worried they will be rendered useless like all the previous ones because of abuse and in a much shorter time span. Looking at you agro industry.