Comments on: A Molecule That Can Help Antibiotics Kill Superbugs

By: Geack

Geack — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 02:10:28 +0000

@daddyvortex 3.
Actually, controlling something like this wouldn’t be that tough. Its use could be restricted to known cases of otherwise resistant bacteria. Plus, a huge chunk of the overuse problem comes from feeding antibiotics to cattle; since this use doesn’t involve actually treating any disease, the adjuvant wouldn’t likely be used in that setting.

By: Richard Petrus

Richard Petrus — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 23:32:34 +0000

Precisely, that’s the reason why a therapeutic model needs to be developed which prevents the bacteria from expressing antibiotic resistance genes, rather than simply allow permeation of the membrane while permitting the bacteria to synthesize proteins which confer resistance to antibiotics.

A better option would be to utilize a drug delivery method to introduce siRNA into infected cells in order to silence the expression of the antibiotic resistance genes of the bacteria, via RNA interference (essentially gene therapy). The idea is to sequence the precise genes of the bacteria which confer resistance, then engineer siRNA molecules which correspond to these resistance genes, treat infected cells (or bacterial colonies themselves) with the siRNA invitro, and then run a Northern blot to examine the change in RNA levels of the genes which confer resistance as compared to untreated cells.

By: daddyvortex

daddyvortex — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 02:12:23 +0000

OK, if you’d like this adjuvant/antibiotic therapy to be effective more than a few years, strict controls will have to be placed on its use. Somehow, we will have to get world-wide compliance. Good luck with that.

By: Richard Petrus

Richard Petrus — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:32:14 +0000

Fascinating feature. In the field of infectious disease research, the development of innovative therapeutics that challenge the current treatment paradigm is not solely an option, but an unwavering necessity as pathogens constantly adapt and acquire properties of resistance at a speed that rivals the rate at which medical models are produced to fight these very same pathogens.

The concept of an adjuvant which renders bacterial membranes more easily permeable to antibiotics is certainly a strong step in the right direction, yet the bacterial genes which confer resistance would still continue to be expressed. I wait eagerly for the day in which a study is published which describes a new adjuvant which directly suppresses expression of the resistance genes so that they will be rendered vulnerable to traditional antibiotic treatment. Excellent article, this research is certainly one step closer towards making anxiety concerning superbug infections-and their debilitating effects-a thing of the past!

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 17:01:53 +0000

Green Tea has also been found to make them 3 times more effective.