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Researchers studying natural antibiotics have isolated one that eradicated the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease, potentially offering a breakthrough treatment for the pathogen both in humans and in the natural environment.
Hygromycin A, which scientists found in a soil microbe screen, was found to clear the infection of B. burgdorferi, bacteria found in tiny worm-like parasites that cause most of the worst effects of disease, without harming the rest of the microbiome of living mice and human cells.
A debilitating disease that can put some people out of action for years to come, Lyme disease affects 500,000 Americans each year, costing more than $ 3 billion in medical care, and many more in lost work hours. It causes a variety of conditions, some minor, some major, and is treated primarily with non-selective antibiotics that wreak havoc on the beneficial bacterial communities that we all carry on our skin and in the gut.
After infecting mice with B. burgdorferi, hygromycin A, was administered twice a day for five days. Using a PCR test that stimulates rapid replication of even single cells, the treatment has been shown to eliminate all traces of the infection.
Furthermore, in vitro tests on human cells have found that even at completely unnecessarily high doses, its therapeutic index is superior to some of the safer over-the-counter drugs.
Hygromycin A targets these worm-like spirochetes, which, along with Lyme disease, also cause other diseases. Another spirochete eliminated by hygromycin A is called T. pallidum, which not only causes syphilis, but has been a notable recipient of antibiotic resistance.
A great friend
Broad-spectrum antibiotics, along with the destruction of our beneficial microbes, have been shown in the article to be strongly linked to harmful bacterial overgrowths popping up in dead spaces left by an antibiotic like amoxicillin or doxycycline. They have also led to antibiotic resistance in many common pathogens.
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In contrast, treatment with hygromycin A resulted in an increase in harmless species such as lactobacilli.
“Lyme disease is on the rise and in many places is limiting our ability to enjoy outdoor activities,” the authors write. “A more permanent solution would require eradicating the source of the disease. We show that baits containing clear hygromycin A B. burgdorferi infection in mice, the main host of the pathogen.
However, the good news did not end there for the team, as they began to believe that because hygromycin A selectively targeted spirochetes, the tiny parasites mentioned earlier, it might be possible to inoculate entire ecosystems. against Lyme disease, since hygromycin A is also a naturally occurring soil microbe, and therefore already has an established place in the earth’s web of life.
They referred to a study that looked at how a parasitic bait containing the common broad-spectrum doxycycline spread in an area and eradicated the pathogen responsible for Lyme disease in 87% of mice and 94% of mice. ticks.
“This is well above the levels required to reduce infection below the … percentage of infected ticks and mice required to maintain the infectious cycle in nature,” note the authors.
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“Doxycycline, however, is an essential part of our dwindling antibiotic arsenal, and its wide distribution is impossible due to the risk of selecting resistant microorganisms. Hygromycin A, with its limited activity against non-spirochete organisms, would make an ideal antibiotic targeting the reservoir against B. burgdorferi.“
Not only could they be on the path to eliminating Lyme disease in humans, but possibly in the natural environment as well, which along with many other huge benefits would allow people in prone areas to wear shorts and t-shirts again on a summer hike. , which deserves some celebration.
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