New Study Explores Targeting Proteins To Reduce Virulence vs. Killing Bacteria Outright

In collaboration with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a new study by the University of Maryland has revealed a new way to approach the treatment of deadly drug-resistant infections, Phys.org reports.

The researchers claim that rather than trying to kill bacteria outright, reducing virulence in drug-resistant infections could be an effective alternative approach. The study examined the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacterium and revealed how two proteins enable the bacterium to secrete toxins that make people sick.

By therapies targeting these two proteins, MRSA could be rendered less lethal, if not harmless. This strategy may lower the chance of antibiotic resistance. The study also implies that similar mechanisms may exist in other bacteria, indicating the possibility of a new method for treating various bacterial infections.

Problem with Antibiotic Resistance

The World Health Organization says that antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to the health of people all over the world. Because of this, the organization suggests that making newer and more effective antibiotics should be a top priority.

Why is this considered such a significant problem? When first-line antibiotics are ineffective in treating infections, doctors may require more costly drugs. Because of this, more people become severely ill and need extended treatment periods in hospitals, which drives up the cost of healthcare and places further financial strain on families.

As a result of this selective breeding, superbugs like MRSA and multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis have also emerged. The potential for such mutations could be eliminated by a method that renders an infection less deadly without killing it.

More About the UMD Study

The study's findings suggest that future therapeutics targeting one transporter protein could reduce virulence, and those targeting the second transporter protein could reduce virulence while also having an antibiotic effect.

The researchers found that many other bacteria have genes for producing a dual transport protein system similar to the one found in MRSA. This points to the potential for a new approach to treating other bacterial infections.

According to Seth Dickey, lead author of the study and assistant professor in the UMD Department of Veterinary Medicine, "We were looking for an alternative way of approaching MRSA."

"We were interested in understanding how the bacterium causes disease to see if we could interfere directly with the virulence factors that the bug produces. If we can disarm it, then we may not have to worry about it evading antimicrobial agents," the lead author added.

Previous Work

A previous study by Dickey and other teams looked at how two proteins in MRSA bacteria work to transport toxins outside of the bacterial cell. Scientists did not understand why there were two of these transporter proteins or how they worked, which made it difficult to develop treatments to prevent the secretion of toxins.

The said study found that one transporter protein moves hydrophilic toxins while the other moves hydrophobic toxins. Without the second transporter protein, MRSA cells are damaged by their hydrophobic toxins. The study suggested that targeting these two proteins could potentially disable MRSA and treat other bacterial infections.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.