Antibiotic Produced by Ant Bacteria May Help MRSA Patients

Author: John Innes Centre
Published: 2017/02/17 - Updated: 2025/02/13
Publication Type: Findings
Peer-Reviewed: Yes
Topic: MRSA Infections - Publications List

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main

Synopsis: A new antibiotic, produced by bacteria found on a species of African ant, is very potent against antibiotic-resistant superbugs like MRSA.

Why it matters: This article provides an insightful exploration into the potential of Streptomyces bacteria as a significant resource for developing new antibiotics against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). MRSA is a particularly dangerous form of staph bacteria due to its resistance to many antibiotics, posing a serious threat especially in healthcare settings and among vulnerable populations like seniors and those with disabilities. The article discusses how Streptomyces, known for producing various antibiotics, could be a key player in combating MRSA infections, which are prevalent not only in hospitals but increasingly in the community. It highlights the ongoing research into this genus, which could lead to the discovery of novel compounds effective against MRSA, thereby offering hope for better treatment options for those at higher risk of infection, including the elderly and individuals with compromised immune systems. The information presented here could be of great interest to healthcare providers, researchers, and anyone concerned with antibiotic resistance and infection control - Disabled World (DW).

Introduction

Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) and the John Innes Centre (JIC) discovered a new member of the Streptomyces bacteria family, isolated from the African fungus-growing plant-ant Tetraponera penzigi. They have named the new species Streptomyces formicae and the antibiotics formicamycins, after the Latin formica, meaning ant.

Main Item

Lab tests have shown these new antibiotics are effective against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE), bacteria which are resistant to a number of common antibiotics and can cause life-threatening infections.

Prof Barrie Wilkinson from JIC said:

"Our findings highlight the importance of searching as-yet under-explored environments, which, when combined with recent advances in genome sequencing and editing, enables the discovery of new species making natural product antibiotics which could prove invaluable in the fight against AMR."

Almost all of the antibiotics currently in clinical use come from a group of bacteria called actinomycetes that were isolated from soil between 40-80 years ago, the 'golden age' of antibiotic discovery. Inappropriate use of these antibiotics since then has led to widespread antimicrobial resistance (AMR), where disease-causing bacteria and fungi have become resistant to one or more antibiotics.

Prof Matt Hutchings from UEA said:

"We have been exploring the chemical ecology of protective symbioses formed between antibiotic-producing bacteria and fungus-growing insects to better understand how these associations are formed and explore them as a new source of anti-infective drugs."

"Kenyan plant-ants live in symbiosis with thorny acacia trees. They live and breed in domatia - which are hollowed out structures which the plant evolved to house them - and grow fungus in them for food. In return, they protect the plants from large herbivores including elephants, which won't eat plants covered in ants."

Kenyan plant-ants live in symbiosis with thorny acacia trees.

The team isolated a number of actinomycete bacterial strains from the acacia plant housing the ants, selecting a number for genome sequencing. One particular strain caught their attention, and the antibiotic compounds produced from it showed promising activity in early tests against other disease-causing bacteria.

Prof Hutchings said:

"We tested formicamycins against clinical isolates of MRSA and vancomycin-resistant Enteroccocus faecium (VRE) and found that they are very potent inhibitors of these organisms."

To test this further, they repeated the tests by growing the strains for 20 generations in very low, sub-inhibitory concentrations of formicamycins and found no sign that the test strains acquired spontaneous higher level resistance to the new antibiotics.

Attribution/Source(s): This peer reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by John Innes Centre and published on 2017/02/17, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity. For further details or clarifications, John Innes Centre can be contacted at jic.ac.uk NOTE: Disabled World does not provide any warranties or endorsements related to this article.

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Citing and References

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Cite This Page: John Innes Centre. (2017, February 17 - Last revised: 2025, February 13). Antibiotic Produced by Ant Bacteria May Help MRSA Patients. Disabled World (DW). Retrieved March 27, 2025 from www.disabled-world.com/health/mrsa/streptomyces.php

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