Alligator blood could target hospital superbugs
Proteins in alligator blood could target antibiotic-resistant infections
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Monday, 07, Apr 2008 09:16
Alligators could become the unlikely saviours in the battle to clamp down on antibiotic-resistant infections such as MRSA.
Biochemists in Louisiana say proteins in alligator blood may provide a source of powerful new antibiotics to help fight infections.
Previous research has shown that alligators have an unusually strong immune system that is different from that of humans.
Unlike humans, alligators can fight microorganisms such as fungi, viruses and bacteria without having prior exposure to them.
Scientists believe they have evolved this ability as they need to heal wounds quickly as they are often injured during territorial battles.
For the latest study, researchers at Louisiana State University and McNeese State University collected blood samples from American alligators.
They then isolated disease-fighting white blood cells and extracted the active proteins from those cells.
In laboratory tests small amounts of the protein killed a wide range of bacteria including MRSA and six out of eight different strains of Candida albicans.
The researchers are now working to find the exact chemical structures of the antimicrobial proteins and determine which proteins are most effective at killing different microbes.
They estimate that the alligator blood extract may contain at least four promising substances.
"We're very excited about the potential of these alligator blood proteins as both antibacterial and antifungal agents," said study co-author Dr Mark Merchant at McNeese State University.
"There's a real possibility that you could be treated with an alligator blood product one day."
The researchers believe their research could result in antibacterial or antifungal drugs, including pills and creams, for fighting infections.
Alligator blood creams, they argue, could conceivably be rubbed onto the foot ulcers of patients with diabetes to help prevent the type of uncontrolled infections that lead to amputations as well as to the skin of burn patients to keep infections at bay until damaged skin can heal.