Posted on 08/10/2021 7:48:50 AM PDT by ConservativeMind
Australian researchers have revealed how the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) obtains the essential nutrient, manganese, from our bodies, which could lead to better therapies to target what is a life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant pathogen.
Pneumococcus is one of the world's deadliest organisms, responsible for more than one million deaths each year and is the leading infectious cause of mortality in children under five. It is the main cause of bacterial pneumonia, as well as a major cause of meningitis, sepsis and inner ear infections (otitis media).
All organisms, including pathogens, need vitamins and minerals to survive. While researchers knew that manganese was critical for survival of the pneumococcus, how it took manganese from the body wasn't understood.
University of Melbourne Associate Professor Megan Maher, a laboratory head at Bio21, said they noticed the bacterium was drawing in nutrients in a regulated way.
"Eventually we discovered that this was due to a unique gateway that sits in the bacterium's membrane that opens and closes to specifically allow manganese in," said Associate Professor Maher.
"This is a completely new structure that has never been seen in a pathogen like this."
"Previously, it was thought that these gateways acted like Teflon coated channels in the sense that everything just flowed through," explained Professor McDevitt.
"Now we understand that it is selectively drawing the manganese in. Any disturbance of this gateway starves the pathogen of manganese, which prevents it from being able to cause disease."
It could hold the key to better and alternative therapies against the pneumococcus.
Although a pneumococcal vaccine does exist, it only provides limited protection against circulating strains, and antibiotic resistance rates are rapidly rising.
"It's a really attractive therapeutic target as it sits on the surface of the bacterium, and our bodies don't use this type of gateway," Professor McDevitt said.
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
Of course, if this specific bacteria had become life threatening, one may want to experiment with restriction.
Also helpful to stop eating sugar and bread. Feeds EVERY disease there is.
Interesting. Thanks for posting.
Pneumo is quite common and many carry it in their noses or throats without disease. I am guessing I do.
I may want to get that pneumovax now that I think about it.
A really easy diplo to recognize under the microscope, docs I have worked with will treat from a gram stain.
"Starving pneumonia-causing bacteria of its( favorite 'food' -manganese,) ....holds promise for new antibiotics "
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Manganese-HealthProfessional/
Manganese is an essential trace element that is naturally present in many foods and available as a dietary supplement. Manganese is a cofactor for many enzymes, including manganese superoxide dismutase, arginase, and pyruvate carboxylase [1,2]. Through the action of these enzymes, manganese is involved in amino acid, cholesterol, glucose, and carbohydrate metabolism; reactive oxygen species scavenging; bone formation; reproduction; and immune response [3-7]. Manganese also plays a role in blood clotting and hemostasis in conjunction with vitamin K [5].
Manganese is absorbed in the small intestine through an active transport system and, possibly, through diffusion when intakes are high [2]. After absorption, some manganese remains free, but most is bound to transferrin, albumin, and plasma alpha-2-macroglobulin. Manganese is taken up by the liver and other tissues, but the mechanism of this process is not well understood [1,2].
The human body contains about 10 to 20 mg manganese, of which 25% to 40% is in bone [1,2]. The liver, pancreas, kidney, and brain also contain manganese. The body maintains stable tissue manganese concentrations through regulatory control of manganese absorption and excretion [5]. More than 90% of absorbed manganese is excreted via bile into the feces, and a small amount is reabsorbed [1,2,4,5]. Very little is excreted in urine.
Manganese status is difficult to assess and not routinely measured in clinical practice. Normal whole blood concentrations of manganese range from 4 to 15 mcg/L [1], but they are highly variable and their utility as a status indicator is unclear [4]. Some studies that measured serum or plasma manganese concentrations in apparently healthy adults have shown mean serum concentrations of 1.04 mcg/L and mean plasma concentrations of 1.28 mcg/L [4,8]. Large variations in manganese intakes appear to affect these concentrations somewhat [9]. However, these concentrations often do not correlate well with typical manganese intakes, so whether they are useful indicators of manganese status is not clear [4].
Although urinary manganese concentrations decrease with severe deficiency, it is not clear whether they are useful indicators of manganese status when intakes are within the normal range [4].
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