Scientists Locate A Genetic 'On/Off Switch' In Diphtheria; Find May Yield Antibiotics That Won't Boost Bacterial ...( by sequestering iron. Thebattle then ...)

Scientists say the new findings raise the prospect of a novel class of antibiotics that won't foster bacterial resistance; current-generation treatments can lead to resistance in as little as six months. "Today's antibiotics actually strengthen resistant strains of bacteria," notes Gregory Petsko, Gyula and Katica Tauber Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacodynamics and director of the Rosenstiel Center at Brandeis. "When they kill off normal strains while leaving resistant strains unaffected, they're essentially selecting for the resistant strains' survival."

"The potential new class of drugs here would be better because rather than killing the bacteria, they'd simply prevent the bacteria from becoming virulent and killing you," adds Petsko, who was not involved in this work.

Once 95 percent lethal, diphtheria is no longer a major concern in the developed world. But the former Soviet Union has experienced a sharp recurrence of the disease during the 1990s, and public health officials are watching with alarm as the outbreak trudges westward toward Europe.

Ringe was joined in the work by Andre White and Xiaochun Ding at Brandeis and Johanna C. vanderSpek and John R. Murphy at Boston University. The research was sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Lucille P. Markey Charitable Trust.

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Contact: Steve Bradt
bradt@brandeis.edu
781-736-4203
Brandeis University
5-Nov-1998