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Antibiotic resistance to the bacteria responsible for gonorrhea and meningococcal meningitis may one day be a thing of the past thanks to researchers at the National Scientific Research Institute (INRS) of Quebec.
They have demonstrated the effectiveness of a “simple” molecule “well known in chemistry in bacterial cultures and living models” that allows to fight these two types of Neisseria bacteria responsible for these two diseases.
“We have noticed that the molecule only destroys the pathogenic Neisseria. It does not affect the other types of Neisseria that are found in the upper respiratory system and which may be helpful, ”said the co-leader of this INRS team, Professor Frédéric Veyrier in a press release Tuesday.
This molecule also has the advantage of being accessible and inexpensive.
Scientists are unable to explain why it is effective against these two types of Neisseria, but they suspect that it acts on the membrane of these bacteria.
During their experiments, they examined whether there was possible resistance to the molecule. “We were able to isolate strains of bacteria that were less sensitive to treatment, but this resistance was double-edged, as these mutants completely lost their virulence,” said microbiology professor Frédéric Veyrier.
Given the increase in cases of antibiotic resistance of the Neisseria bacterium responsible for gonorrhea and meningococcal meningitis, this discovery therefore takes on further importance.
Unlike other bacteria, these two Neisseria have a strong ability to acquire genes from other bacteria and thus resist antibiotics. As they affect thousands of people, they also have the potential to transform.
But if these antibiotic-resistant mutant bacteria lose their virulence in front of the molecule used by the INRS researchers, they can thus be neutralized. And this observed phenomenon paves the way for other more fundamental research to better understand what makes one bacterium virulent over others.
For the future, this INRS team intends to go further by modifying the molecule “to make it more effective while maintaining its specificity”. He also hopes to work with a partner to develop a possible treatment.
These results were published online on November 9 in the scientific journal “Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy”.
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