Staphyloccocus aureus can acquire additional genes that promote infections and antibacterial resistance and may open new paths for the development of antibacterial drugs.
Antibiotics - Use and Abuse
Antibiotics are among the most used and abused medications. This article explains some general features about antibiotics.
Antibiotics are among the most used and abused medications. This article explains some general features about antibiotics.
‘The Staphylococcus aureus bacterium - a leading cause of serious and life-threatening infections in the United States - is highly resistant to antibiotics. ’
Researchers at Rutgers University-New Brunswick found the two genes in some strains of S. aureus bacteria. The genes protect the germs from copper, which is increasingly used in the global fight against severe infections. Some strains of S. aureus have newly acquired genes embedded in their genome in pieces of DNA called transposons. DNA can be transferred from one organism to another, and transposons help the acquired DNA rapidly become a permanent part of the recipient's chromosome.
Transposons aid in the spread of genes that can give rise to bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics and more likely to cause disease. The newly discovered genes are encoded within a transposon.
Natural Antibiotics to Fight Bacterial Infections
Fighting infections the natural way and preventing them is always more effective than consuming medicines and antibiotics to treat them.
Fighting infections the natural way and preventing them is always more effective than consuming medicines and antibiotics to treat them.
Copper has been used for thousands of years to sterilize wounds and drinking water, and hospitals recently began using it against bacteria found on medical instruments and other surfaces. But the two newly discovered genes, named copB and copL, encode proteins that help remove copper from S. aureus cells and prevent it from entering.
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Quiz on Bacterial Infections
Bacteria the tiny single-celled organisms are responsible for a range of infections. Bacteria can be beneficial as in the case of gut bacteria that help digest food. Bacteria that cause infection are known as pathogenic bacteria and can be treated with appropriate antibiotics. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria become resistant to commonly used antibiotics. Examples of antibiotic-resistant bacteria include Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) and multi-drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-producing bacteria (KPC).
Bacteria the tiny single-celled organisms are responsible for a range of infections. Bacteria can be beneficial as in the case of gut bacteria that help digest food. Bacteria that cause infection are known as pathogenic bacteria and can be treated with appropriate antibiotics. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria become resistant to commonly used antibiotics. Examples of antibiotic-resistant bacteria include Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) and multi-drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-producing bacteria (KPC).
Rutgers scientists, in collaboration with scientists at the University at Buffalo, also revealed the 3D structure of the copL protein in the B. subtilis bacterium, a relative of S. aureus, using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods. Those methods were also used to identify the area where copper binds to the surface of the protein.
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New Agent That Makes People Vulnerable to Bacterial Infections Discovered
Scientists have identified USP18, a double agent in the immune system that makes people vulnerable to bacterial infections.
Scientists have identified USP18, a double agent in the immune system that makes people vulnerable to bacterial infections.
Source-Eurekalert
