Posted on Jun 23, 2016
Scientists just found a compound that kills 98% of a drug-resistant bacteria
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I had a MRSA infection before (from a surgery), so this is good news.
"Researchers have discovered a compound in an Antarctic sea sponge that's capable of killing 98 percent of the drug-resistant superbug, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - better known as MRSA - which is rapidly spreading throughout the US.
With more and more bacteria species becoming resistant to the antibiotics we have available, scientists are desperately looking for new ways to protect against infection, and early research suggests that the Antarctic sponge could be an option.
Staphylococcus aureus - or staph - infections are pretty common, particularly in hospital settings, and under normal circumstances they're not particularly hard to treat. But MRSA is a strain that's developed resistance to most of the antibiotics we have available, which means it can quickly spread from a superficial infection, such as a skin infection, to an invasive one, which can be life-threatening.
According to the Centres for Disease Control (CDC), around 80,000 MRSA infections are diagnosed in the US each year, and 11,000 people die from MRSA complications - and right now, we really don't have many options to fight them.
Which is why the discovery of this new compound, which has been named 'darwinolide', is so exciting. Researchers found it inside an Antarctic sponge, Dendrilla membranosa, and initial lab tests have shown that it's able to kill 98.4 percent of MRSA cells.
"It's a defensive compound against microbes with some very interesting properties," said one of the researchers, James McClintock, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
It's still very early days, but this isn't the first time that medically interesting compounds have been founding lurking in the ocean organisms in Antarctica - McClintock and his team have already identified a compound in algae that fights the H1N1 strain of the flu virus, and another that acts against melanoma skin cancer.
The appeal for biologists is that the region is so extreme that life has been forced to come up with some unique ways to survive."
"Researchers have discovered a compound in an Antarctic sea sponge that's capable of killing 98 percent of the drug-resistant superbug, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - better known as MRSA - which is rapidly spreading throughout the US.
With more and more bacteria species becoming resistant to the antibiotics we have available, scientists are desperately looking for new ways to protect against infection, and early research suggests that the Antarctic sponge could be an option.
Staphylococcus aureus - or staph - infections are pretty common, particularly in hospital settings, and under normal circumstances they're not particularly hard to treat. But MRSA is a strain that's developed resistance to most of the antibiotics we have available, which means it can quickly spread from a superficial infection, such as a skin infection, to an invasive one, which can be life-threatening.
According to the Centres for Disease Control (CDC), around 80,000 MRSA infections are diagnosed in the US each year, and 11,000 people die from MRSA complications - and right now, we really don't have many options to fight them.
Which is why the discovery of this new compound, which has been named 'darwinolide', is so exciting. Researchers found it inside an Antarctic sponge, Dendrilla membranosa, and initial lab tests have shown that it's able to kill 98.4 percent of MRSA cells.
"It's a defensive compound against microbes with some very interesting properties," said one of the researchers, James McClintock, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
It's still very early days, but this isn't the first time that medically interesting compounds have been founding lurking in the ocean organisms in Antarctica - McClintock and his team have already identified a compound in algae that fights the H1N1 strain of the flu virus, and another that acts against melanoma skin cancer.
The appeal for biologists is that the region is so extreme that life has been forced to come up with some unique ways to survive."
Scientists just found a compound that kills 98% of a drug-resistant bacteria
Posted from sciencealert.comPosted in these groups: 
Health
Medicine
Health and Wellness
Antarctica
University of Alabama – Birmingham
Health Medicine Health and Wellness Antarctica University of Alabama – Birmingham
Posted >1 y ago
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I'm proud of my paramedic education at UAB and enjoyed it immensely. I'm also proud of the research which goes on here. I am a patient at the VAMC her in Birmingham, which is directly across from the UAB Hospital and research facilities.
While my PCP's are VA doctors, almost all surgeons and specialists are UAB doctors, which means we get some of the best medical care in the nation.
While my PCP's are VA doctors, almost all surgeons and specialists are UAB doctors, which means we get some of the best medical care in the nation.
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I guess I'll have to eat jellyfish so I can remember to eat the sponge! It makes sense that extreme environments create extreme response mechanisms. But they also create great vulnerabilities. When I was deploying to Antarctica, we captured the first penguins for Sea World in San Diego. They all died because of a common bird fungus that they had no resistance to. That fungus doesn't exist in Antarctica. So Sea World implemented special entry procedures like a betadine shoe dip and other things. We collected another batch the following year and that one was sustainable. Trivia question. When you pet a penguin, does it feel hot or cold? Hot, but it's not from the bird. Their feathered coat is such an efficient insulator, your escaping body heat is refracted back.
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CAPT Kevin B.
SPC (Join to see) Only MIL stuff nowadays are the ANG C-130 and AF C-17 flights so they have a few ground element folk during the summer. No Navy for years. No Army for longer than that (maybe the IGY in 1957). CG gets down to break up the ice, but only the liaison officer hangs around during the summer. Bottom line, looks to be zero opportunity for an AR Medic. It's been a National Science Foundation contract out effort for a long time.
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Ironically, by not killing those 2%, you are essentially making it more genetically viable for even stronger drug-resistant bacteria to grow.
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