Merck discovers ‘new class of antibiotic’ in soil

Merck researchers have found a new type of antibiotic in a sample of soil from South Africa, according to a new study published in the British journal, Nature.

The new compound, called platensimycin, is produced from Streptomyces platensis and it has been tested in mice infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, with positive results. Although it is not known if the drug will be successful in humans, it could have uses against bacteria that are antibiotic-resistant, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which in recent years developed resistance to vancomycin.

Eric Brown, who holds the research chair in microbial biochemistry at McMaster University, is quoted by the Hamilton Spectator as saying: “These guys have used some pretty sophisticated technology to go from screens of hundreds of thousands of extracts from drug-producing organisms to find one molecule and really sort out the details of how it works.”

“It’s pretty cool. You’re talking to a guy who spends all his day trying to think of new ways to kill bacteria. It’s really a brand new way of killing bacteria, so long as this thing actually goes the distance,” he added.

According to the Royal London Hospital League of Nurses, the last unique antibiotic to be discovered was trimethoprim, in 1968. Antibiotic research since then has been focussed on making new variants of existing antibiotic. Also, research into bateriophages – viruses that attack bacteria – has also been undertaken recently, as bacteria are becoming increasingly resistant to existing antibiotics.

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