Use bacterial immunity to make them

Overuse of antibiotics on humans and animals is thought to be the main cause of the rise of antibiotic-resistant or superbug bacteria (bacteria resistant to many antibiotics). Today, researchers have created a smart antibiotic bomb that can focus on individual strains of bacteria, thereby bringing a new generation of antibiotics to prevent the threat of resistant bacteria. antibiotic.

Developed by researchers from the University of North Carolina (NC), their technique offers the potential of a new weapon in the fight against multiple drug-resistant bacteria. Unlike normal antibiotics, which kill both beneficial and harmful bacteria, the new method will focus and destroy certain types of bacteria while not touching beneficial bacteria. So they call this a smart antibiotic bomb.

In the immune system of many bacteria often contains a system called CRISPR-Cas . CRISRP stands for Clustered Regualarly Interspaced Palindromic Repeats - evenly symmetrical repeat sequence is DNA sequences that are protected by many types of bacteria and bacteria. When bacteria are attacked by outside intrusive objects, such as viruses, the CRISPR-Cas system will generate small RNA (Acid Ribonucleic) sequences called CRISPR RNA that can identify and pair. with the DNA sequences of the intrusive object. When CRISPR RNA finds a junction, they release proteins called Cas to cut the target's DNA, thus preventing infection.

By designing CRISPR RNAs that focus on the bacteria's own DNA sequence, researchers at the NC adjusted the bacterial immune system to "commit suicide".

Dr Chase Beisel, associate professor of chemical and molecular biology engineering at NCU, said: "In the lab, we have realized that this method removes the concentrated bacteria. We "Still trying to find out more about DNA cutting to remove bacteria. However, the method allows focusing on many different types of bacteria and removing them easily, this is what encourages us."

One of the team's remarkable achievements was that they successfully destroyed Salmonella causing diarrhea in humans without affecting beneficial bacteria. In addition, the team has also demonstrated the ability to kill a strain of a bacterial species while another strain of the same species that has 99% of the same DNA remains unaffected.

"By focusing on separate DNA fragments through the CRISPR-Cas system, we can overcome the basic mechanisms of many antibiotic-resistant bacteria , " Dr. Beisel said.

Currently, the team continues to develop CRISPR RNA delivery methods that can be effectively applied in clinical trials. Details of the North Carolina University study have just been published in the online magazine mBio.