New Antidotes Could Relegate 'Superbugs', E. Coli to History!

Scientists have come one step closer to finding toxin antidotes that will make hospital-acquired infections and enterotoxic E. Coli outbreaks things of the past. A team from A*STAR's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology has discovered the secret recipe for 'antidotes' that could neutralize the deadly plant toxin Ricin - widely feared for its bioterrorism potential - as well as the Pseudomonas exotoxin responsible for the tens of thousands of hospital-acquired infections in immune-compromised patients around the world.

Highlighting the significance of this study, IMCB Principal Investigator, Dr Frederic Bard said, "Through this genome-wide screen, our understanding of how toxins interact with human cells at the molecular level has expanded tremendously."

By identifying the specific host genes required for these toxins to attack the cell's protein 'factories', this study effectively singled out the attractive therapeutic targets from the entire human genome for developing antidotes that could potentially be effective against any toxins that share the same mode of action.

Source-ANI