Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

New Anthrax Cure Could End Resistant Biowar Threat
Reuters ^ | Wed Aug 21, 2:32 PM ET | Peter Graff

Posted on 08/21/2002 1:25:26 PM PDT by anymouse

U.S. scientists have made a breakthrough which they believe could thwart one of the most nightmarish forms of terrorism -- an attack with antibiotic-resistant biological weapons.

The scientists, investigating the biowarfare agent anthrax, say they have found a form of treatment that may make it virtually impossible for anthrax germs to mutate into a resistant strain.

Similar methods could be used to fight a host of other infections, opening a new approach to the treatment of disease, scientists familiar with the research said.

In a paper published in the British science journal Nature, researchers from the Rockefeller University in New York said they had cured a disease in mice produced by anthrax-like bacteria, using a protein produced by a bacteria-killing virus.

The treatment saved nearly 70 percent of mice injected with the anthrax-like bacteria, which would normally kill the rodents within five hours.

It was the first time scientists had treated bacteria with the proteins used by bacteria-killing viruses, which the team said could provide "an enormous untapped pool" of new treatments for bacterial diseases of all kinds.

Stephen Leppla, of the National Institutes of Health near Washington D.C., who was asked by Nature to review the research, told Reuters Wednesday it was an "incredibly clever idea, and it certainly defines a new way to kill bacteria.

"It's still clearly an early stage, but I think a lot of people are going to try to apply this therapy to other pathogens," said Leppla, a 22-year anthrax research veteran.

REPLACEMENT FOR CIPRO?

So far, traditional antibiotics have been the only way to cure anthrax, as millions learned during the U.S. panic last year when five people were killed and 13 became ill after contact with anthrax-laced letters sent through the mail.

Those who thought they might have had contact with the bacteria were advised to take tablets of the antibiotic ciproflaxin, or "cipro," and people rushed to buy the drug.

But bacteria often become immune to antibiotics, a process that can be accelerated by germ warfare scientists using genetic engineering. An antibiotic-resistant strain of the disease would be a far more terrifying biowarfare agent.

The Rockefeller University team relied on a virus, called a bacteriophage, which attacks the anthrax bacteria. In their paper, the scientists said the virus produces a protein called a lysin, which wrecks the cell wall of anthrax bacteria.

They said they had tried and failed to breed bacteria strains resistant to lysin, despite using methods that easily bred bacteria resistant to conventional antibiotics.

Leppla said new strains of the bacteria were unlikely to develop cell walls that the lysin could not "chew through."

"They have targeted the cell wall structure, and it would be very hard for the bacteria to mutate to change that structure so it could become immune to the lysin," he said.

The scientists also found that within seconds of being attacked by the lysin, the anthrax bacteria produced an easily detected chemical called ATP. That could make it far easier to confirm and respond to an anthrax attack.


TOPICS: Anthrax Scare; Breaking News; Culture/Society; Technical; US: New York; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: anthrax; biotech; biowar; geneticengineering; medicine; nih; science
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-25 next last
Who says genetic engineering is bad?

But if this lysin virus destroys Anthrax cells so readily, one wonders what it does to human cells? Hopefully this bug only likes Anthrax and doesn't mutate itself into liking us instead.

More research is needed, but jolly good show.

1 posted on 08/21/2002 1:25:26 PM PDT by anymouse
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: anymouse
this recieves one big...HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM from me
2 posted on 08/21/2002 1:34:03 PM PDT by My Favorite Headache
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: My Favorite Headache
"The scientists also found that within seconds of being attacked by the lysin, the anthrax bacteria produced an easily detected chemical called ATP"

Correct me if I am wrong. ATP = Adenosine Triphosphate.

Don't all living cells produce this?
3 posted on 08/21/2002 1:46:23 PM PDT by jbstrick
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
The treatment saved nearly 70 percent of mice injected with the anthrax-like bacteria, which would normally kill the rodents within five hours.

Wow. We can save 70% of Americans, and that ain't bad. Although it would put something of a dent into the real estate market.

4 posted on 08/21/2002 1:47:37 PM PDT by andy_card
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
Yeah, whats nice about this (assuming that it doesn't turn out to be the Andromeda Strain and kill us all)is that if this approach works for other pathogens, this could potentially replace antibiotics.

Thanks to years of overprescription, many once easily treatable diseases like Staph and TB now have antibiotic-resistant strains. We've about run out of antibiotics of last resort.
5 posted on 08/21/2002 1:50:29 PM PDT by Maximum Leader
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mitchell; aristeides; dogbyte12; The Great Satan
fyi
6 posted on 08/21/2002 1:57:43 PM PDT by Fred Mertz
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
Some scientists are experimenting with crocodile blood. It seems crocodile don't get bacterial infections because of a protein in their blood that explodes bacteria.
7 posted on 08/21/2002 2:02:55 PM PDT by techcor
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Fred Mertz
Interesting idea. But I wonder what these viruses will do to the bacteria that we need, notably those in our digestive tracts.
8 posted on 08/21/2002 2:06:50 PM PDT by aristeides
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
This could be really good news. If they could do the same for viruses, we'd be in great shape! R&D bump!
9 posted on 08/21/2002 2:16:48 PM PDT by Teacher317
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
I hope these people have a security team consisting of 20-30 heavily armed men. Way to many biologists have ended up committing suicide lately.
10 posted on 08/21/2002 2:28:31 PM PDT by Aggie Mama
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
No, these are bacteriophages--known as phages for short. And each phage is a little virus that ONLY kills ONE bacteria. Some ancient bacteria have remnants of phages incorporated into them so that is evidence of a long ago struggle which the bacteria won.

So human cells would be okay.

This is a brilliant idea. BRILLIANT.
11 posted on 08/21/2002 2:31:57 PM PDT by equus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: aristeides
Interesting idea. But I wonder what these viruses will do to the bacteria that we need, notably those in our digestive tracts

Same thing antibiotics do - decimate them, resulting in the runs and other GI problems. But easy enough to repopulate: Just eat some yogurt and McDonald's burgers.

12 posted on 08/21/2002 2:35:55 PM PDT by BearCub
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
HMMMMM....thought provoking to say the least....but still in the early stages.

Still, I hope it's not just research funding hype.

BUMP

13 posted on 08/21/2002 2:48:55 PM PDT by cake_crumb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
"But if this lysin virus destroys Anthrax cells so readily, one wonders what it does to human cells? Hopefully this bug only likes Anthrax and doesn't mutate itself into liking us instead."

I think it's very unlikely that an anthrax-specific virus could ever become dangerous to a mammal.

However, I would worry about it "getting into the wild" and morphing into a bug that could attack the BT bacteria.

BT is essentially "anthrax for insects". It's nearly identical to its brother (Anthrax) that is deadly to mammals, but its effect is restricted to insects, which is why you can buy it in powder form and sprinkle it in your garden with impunity.

However, if the virus was able to become deadly to BT, and then get into the insect population, uh oh...

14 posted on 08/21/2002 3:15:49 PM PDT by Don Joe
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: techcor
I've always wondered why you never see a lawyer calling in sick. :)
15 posted on 08/21/2002 3:16:53 PM PDT by Don Joe
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: equus
Fascinating.

Do you work in this field, or did you just "stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night"? LOL

16 posted on 08/21/2002 3:52:42 PM PDT by conservatism_IS_compassion
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: techcor
Hhhmmnn.....maybe that splains why some folks tend to bite the head off others for hardly any reason at all.
17 posted on 08/21/2002 4:01:00 PM PDT by OldFriend
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: andy_card
Although with interest rates so low, with many first time homebuyers and all the refi's coming in, it shouldn't really hurt the market that bad.
18 posted on 08/21/2002 4:08:35 PM PDT by steveo
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: steveo
Although with interest rates so low, with many first time homebuyers and all the refi's coming in, it shouldn't really hurt the market that bad.

Don't be so sure. The market's already beginning to soften up in my area (suburban D.C.), due largely to the effects of the falling stock market. A 30% drop in the number of potential buyers, due to a major bioterrorism attack, could aggravate the problem somewhat. And this is all the while I'm preparing to put my house on the market, starting Labor Day. Naturally, I'm a little jumpy.

19 posted on 08/21/2002 6:14:52 PM PDT by andy_card
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: anymouse
I have also heard of an anti-toxin that has been developed. Does anyone have any info on this anti-toxin? I believe that this anti-toxin can be used in the event that Pulmonary Anthrax has already been contracted. As I understand, this anti-toxin fights off the toxic effects of the toxin that the Anthrax bacteria releases into someone's system. It has been shown to be effective in mice, I believe who were given many times a lethal dose of Anthrax spores. This anti-toxin is a measure that can be taken on a dying person until anti-biotics start working. Does anyone have any info on this?
20 posted on 08/21/2002 7:51:56 PM PDT by lmr
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-25 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson