Staph receptor as drug target

From Washington, D.C., at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy

A molecule that sits on the surface of Staphylococcus aureus, an infectious microbe that’s resistant to many antibiotics, might offer a weak spot in the bacterium’s defenses, early research suggests. Certain peptides secreted by the bacteria themselves bind to a receptor called AgrC and trigger the bacteria to make toxins. Other peptides shut down the process. Because many bacteria are doing this simultaneously in close quarters, the process becomes a cell-to-cell communication system that enables the cells to coordinate their actions, says Richard P. Novick of the New York University School of Medicine, who presented the findings.

When researchers injected doses of S. aureus under the skin of mice, the animals developed toxin-induced abscesses at those sites within 2 days. But when mice were concurrently given the bacteria and a dose of a peptide that binds to and shuts down AgrC, toxin production was limited. That bought enough time for the animals’ immune systems to dispatch white blood cells that killed the bacteria and prevented abscesses, says Novick.

The inhibitory effect on the receptor lasts up to 2 days. Oddly, the peptide doesn’t last that long in the body. That transience probably dooms the peptide’s prospects as a drug, Novick says. But researchers are already investigating other compounds that might bind to and disable the S. aureus AgrC receptor, he says.

Use up and down arrow keys to explore.Use right arrow key to move into the list.Use left arrow key to move back to the parent list.Use tab key to enter the current list item.Use escape to exit the menu.Use the Shift key with the Tab key to tab back to the search input.
Logo

Looks like your ad blocker is on.

×

We rely on ads to keep creating quality content for you to enjoy for free.

Please support our site by disabling your ad blocker.

Continue without supporting us

Choose your Ad Blocker

  • Adblock Plus
  • Adblock
  • Adguard
  • Ad Remover
  • Brave
  • Ghostery
  • uBlock Origin
  • uBlock
  • UltraBlock
  • Other
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock Plus icon
  2. Click the large blue toggle for this website
  3. Click refresh
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock icon
  2. Under "Pause on this site" click "Always"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Adguard icon
  2. Click on the large green toggle for this website
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ad Remover icon
  2. Click "Disable on This Website"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the orange lion icon
  2. Click the toggle on the top right, shifting from "Up" to "Down"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ghostery icon
  2. Click the "Anti-Tracking" shield so it says "Off"
  3. Click the "Ad-Blocking" stop sign so it says "Off"
  4. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock Origin icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the UltraBlock icon
  2. Check the "Disable UltraBlock" checkbox
  3. Marque la casilla de verificación "Desactivar UltraBlock"
  1. Please disable your Ad Blocker
  2. Disable any DNS blocking tools such as AdGuardDNS or NextDNS

If the prompt is still appearing, please disable any tools or services you are using that block internet ads (e.g. DNS Servers).