Scientists find bacteria as effective as antibiotics

CORK scientists have discovered a harmless bacterium that may revolutionise the treatment of a potentially deadly hospital-acquired disease.

Clostridium difficile (C diff), which causes diarrhoea, is now a major problem in hospitals, nursing homes and facilities for elderly people.

The scientists have discovered a molecule that is effective at killing the bug responsible for the infection. It is currently treated with antibiotics.

And, with only two new classes of antibiotic drugs discovered in the last 40 years, there is now a dire need to come up with new medicines to fight infections.

Scientists at the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre based in University College Cork and at Teagasc’s Moorepark Food Research Centre in Fermoy, Co Cork, have discovered an antimicrobial peptide to treat C diff-associated diarrhoea.

Antimicrobial peptides are naturally found in multicellular organisms where they play a defensive role against infectious bacteria.

The peptides act by attaching to bacterial membranes and punching holes in them — a non-specific attack that does not allow the bacteria to mutate and become resistant to future attacks.

The research team, led by Prof Colin Hill, discovered Lacticin 3147 that is produced by the harmless bacterium, Lactococcus lactis, one of a number of bacteria used by cheese-makers for thousands of years.

When lacticin was tested against strains of C diff isolated from patients with diarrhoea or inflammatory bowel disease or healthy adults, it was shown to be as effective as the antibiotics currently in use.