E. coli are extremely widespread bacteria. They live in the environment and in foods. Additionally, E. coli can live in human or animal guts.
Many types of E. coli are harmless. But some can make you very sick. E. coli outbreaks happen every year.
For now, there is no cure for E. coli infections. Hence, it is extremely important to study these bacteria thoroughly. This article looks into E. coli’s internal bomb and how it could help.
Could E. Coli’s Internal Bomb Be the Solution?
What is an internal bomb?
It is also called a toxin-antitoxin system. All bacteria have it. This system consists of genes that release toxins and antidotes.
So why is this important?
New research shows that it could be possible to make use of E. coli’s internal bomb. It could be possible to use it to stop the growth of these bacteria.
But how did scientists approach this? They used nucleic acids and targeted the internal bomb. This made changes in the genes.
Thus, the toxin-antitoxin balance got disrupted. This stopped the bacteria from dividing as intensely.
The more nucleic acid drugs they used, the better the effects were on the bacteria. Furthermore, it is possible to combine these drugs with antibiotics.
So Why Is This Discovery Important?
Using these drugs could eventually lead to a cure for E. coli. But there are some other important consequences as well.
These treatments could prevent mutations of E. coli bacteria. Hence, it could help beat bacterial resistance.
It is also possible to use the same treatment on other kinds of bacteria. After all, they all have the same kind of internal bomb.
