Discover a gene that increases the virulence of resistant bacteria
Text created by automatic translator Elia and has not been subsequently revised by translators. Elia Elhuyar
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Interaction between MRSA (green) bacteria and a leukocyte. Ed. NIAID/NIH
Researchers at the NIAID Institute in the United States have discovered a gene that makes antibiotic bacteria resistant more virulent and have found that the gene is expanding. The results of the research have been published in the journal Nature Medicine.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is causing more and more problems in hospitals around the world. In this case, in an extended strain in Asia they have seen that the bacteria that contain the sasX gene are more virulent than those that do not. The sasX gene encodes a skin protein from bacteria that, according to researchers, can help bacteria become more closely associated with each other and form more compact groups, making it difficult to attack immune cells.
On the other hand, researchers have found that this gene is spreading to other strains. In fact, in the samples collected in the period 2003-2005, 95% of the bacteria that contained the sasX gene belonged to the same strain, while in the samples of the period 2009-2011 this proportion drops to 72%. At the moment, this gene is widespread especially in Asia, but researchers warn that there is a danger of spreading further and propose taking into account the sasX gene as the goal of developing new drugs or vaccines to fight these bacteria.Zu idazle
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