DRAGONS could hold the key to beating superbugs: Komodo Dragon blood found to have 'superantibacterial' properties
DRAGONS could hold the key to beating super bugs: Komodo blood found to have 'super antibacterial' properties
Komodo dragons have at least 57 types of bacteria in saliva, but appear resistant
Researchers incubated Komodo dragon blood, revealing antimicrobial activity
Discovery could help develop new drugs to fight antibiotic-resistant superbugs
By Cheyenne MacDonald
DRAGONS could hold the key to beating super bugs: Komodo blood found to have 'super antibacterial' properties
Komodo dragons have at least 57 types of bacteria in saliva, but appear resistant
Researchers incubated Komodo dragon blood, revealing antimicrobial activity
Discovery could help develop new drugs to fight antibiotic-resistant superbugs
By Cheyenne MacDonald
For Dailymail.com
They’re the largest lizards in the world, with deadly saliva that’s loaded with at least 57 species of bacteria to bring down their prey.
In a technique called bioprospecting, they incubated the Komodo dragon blood with negatively charged hydrogel particles that they developed to capture the positively charged peptides.
This allowed the researchers to identify and sequence 48 potential CAMPS with mass spectrometry.
All of these, except for one, was derived from histone proteins.
They’re the largest lizards in the world, with deadly saliva that’s loaded with at least 57 species of bacteria to bring down their prey.
And,
according to new research, the blood of Komodo dragons could be the key
to developing new drugs in the fight against antibiotic-resistant super-bugs.
The team used a method known
as ‘bio-prospecting,’ revealing antimicrobial protein fragments in their
blood that protects them against infections.
They’re the largest lizards in the
world, with deadly saliva that’s loaded with at least 57 species of
bacteria to bring down their prey. And, according to new research, the
blood of Komodo dragons could be the key to developing new drugs to
fight antibiotic-resistant super bugs
In
the study, researchers from the College of Science at George Mason
University investigated whether they could isolate substances known as
cationic antimicrobial peptides from Komodo dragon blood – massive
lizards the dwell on five small islands in Indonesia.
These
CAMP substances are an essential part of the innate immune system, and
the team had previously done this with alligator blood.
In a technique called bioprospecting, they incubated the Komodo dragon blood with negatively charged hydrogel particles that they developed to capture the positively charged peptides.
This allowed the researchers to identify and sequence 48 potential CAMPS with mass spectrometry.
All of these, except for one, was derived from histone proteins.
NYC - AMNH - Hall of Reptiles and Amphibians - Komodo Dragon
These types of proteins are known to have antimicrobial activities.
The researchers then synthesized eight and tested them against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus.
The antibiotic resistant strain of S. Aureus (MRSA) is a growing problem worldwide.
The analysis revealed that seven of the peptides from the Komodo dragon blood were potent against both of the bacteria.
The eighth peptide was only effective against P. aeruginosa.
The researchers then synthesized eight
and tested them against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus
aureus. The antibiotic resistant strain of S. Aureus (MRSA) is a growing
problem worldwide.
It’s thought that the bacteria in Komodo dragons’ saliva helps them to kill their prey.
But, the dragons themselves appear to be resistant.
According to the new research, serum derived from the animals may have antibacterial abilities as well.
This could pave the way for new therapeutics to treat antibiotic resistant bacteria.
The study demonstrates the power and promise of our bioprospecting approach to cationic antimicrobial peptide (CAMP) discovery and it reveals the presence of a plethora of novel histone-derived antimicrobial peptides in the plasma of the Komodo dragon,’ the authors wrote.
The study demonstrates the power and promise of our bioprospecting approach to cationic antimicrobial peptide (CAMP) discovery and it reveals the presence of a plethora of novel histone-derived antimicrobial peptides in the plasma of the Komodo dragon,’ the authors wrote.
These
findings may have broader implications regarding the role that intact
histones and histone-derived peptides play in defending the host from
infection.’
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