Biological antibiotic alternative works against tuberculosis - TAU study
Antibiotics have for the past century been doctors' main weapon in the battle against bacterial diseases, but many diseases are becoming resistant.
By Aaron Reich, Jerusalem Post, February 23, 2021
Tuberculosis. (photo credit: ALAIN GRILLET/FLICKR)
Scientists from Tel Aviv University have managed to
develop a biological substitute for tuberculosis treatment, which could
eventually act as an alternative to traditional antibiotics, according to a study published in the academic journal Nature Communications.
This
biological antibacterial solution, which is the first of its kind in
human history, succeeded to hinder the growth of tuberculosis in mice.
This was done through the isolation of monoclonal antibodies, which were
taken from a patient who had suffered but recovered from tuberculosis.
Antibiotics have for the past century been doctors'
main weapon in the battle against bacterial diseases. These chemical
agents, efficient and cheap, work by destroying targeted cells, like
microbial pathogen cells.
But
there have always been limits to antibiotics. Part of this is due to
the common biological mechanisms shared by human cells and pathogens
alike, which can make it difficult to target the bacteria without also
causing harm to the body.
But
a possibly even greater limit to antibiotics is resistance. In recent
years, more microbial strains have developed resistance to antibiotics,
and their number could keep rising.
Scientists
have been aware of the issue for years, and have been hard at work
trying to find a new antibacterial shield. This has seen them
investigate many different methods, with one notable example being
researchers at the University of Warwick in the UK investigating a 1,000-year-old remedy from the ancient medical text Bald's Leechbook.
But antibodies could be that long sought-after shield.
ANTIBODIES ARE, essentially, one of the body's
greatest shields against disease. They are proteins produced naturally
by the human immune system after exposure to infection or to a vaccine.
Their reliability and stability are reasons why they see widespread use
in the treatment of cancer, autoimmune conditions and viruses like
COVID-19.
To
test this theory, the research team, led by TAU's Dr. Natalia Freund
and doctoral candidate Avia Watson, in collaboration with laboratories
in the US and China, chose tuberculosis as the infection of choice for
their test model. It was chosen because the vaccine for the disease,
which was developed over 100 years ago, does not work on adults, as well
as the fact that it evolves and develops more varieties resistant to
treatment.
Tuberculosis is extremely contagious, is transferred through the air and many of its strains are resistant to antibiotics – these are reminders of how urgent it is to find an alternative to antibiotics.
The
disease is widespread and has plagued mankind throughout history.
Currently, about 25% of the global population is infected with
tuberculosis, and 1.5 million die from it annually. Israel has around
200 active cases per year.
In
addition, tuberculosis is known to be very complex, with this
complexity and size making isolating monoclonal antibodies extremely
challenging. And yet, despite this and other obstacles, the researchers
succeeded.
They did this by pinpointing a phosphate pump protein on the cell wall, which they found supplies energy to the bacterium and is specific to all strains of tuberculosis. The antibodies the researchers isolated manage to block the pump action, as well as inhibiting bacteria growth and reducing levels.
This was also shown to be effective in three different strains,
and because they target the pump common to all tuberculosis strains, it
is likely that it will work against many others.
"Advances
in biological medicine have enabled us to rout the germs in new ways
that are not based solely on antibiotics, and therefore allow a solution
to the challenge posed by resistant germs," Freund said in a
statement.
"Our
study is an initial proof of concept of employing monoclonal antibodies
(derived from single cells) as an effective therapy in combating
bacterial pathogens."
With
their success, Freund's laboratory is looking into trying this new
biological alternative to antibiotics on other diseases as well.
"The
model that has proven successful in this study will enable us to extend
our future work to include other diseases such as pneumonia and
staphylococcus infections," Freund explained.
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