Antibiotic made from human sweat may cure TB

Feb 25, 2013

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London: A natural antibiotic created from human sweat could fend off deadly strains of tuberculosis and other dangerous superbugs, researchers claim. Dermcidin is produced by our skin when we sweat, and it fights off germs when skin is injured by a cut, scratch or bug bite.
Scientists have uncovered the atomic structure of the compound, enabling them to pinpoint for the first time what makes dermcidin such an efficient weapon in the battle against bugs.
“Antibiotics are not only available on prescription. Our own bodies produce efficient substances to fend off bacteria, fungi and viruses,” researcher Ulrich Zachariae of the University of Edinburgh’s School of Physics, said. “Now that we know in detail how these natural antibiotics work, we can use this to help develop infectionfighting drugs that are more effective than conventional antibiotics,” he said.
Although about 1,700 types of these natural antibiotics are known to exist, scientists did not have a detailed understanding of how they work, according to the researchers.

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