One of the biggest medical challenges in recent times has been fighting infections that are caused by bacteria that are resistant to normal antibiotics. These kinds of “superbugs”, like Escherichia coli (E. coli), have developed immunity to the medications we normally use to eliminate them. This is causing infections to become harder to treat and is a growing health threat. To fight back, scientists are looking to new, natural solutions. One such promising discovery is from a bacterium called Bacillus velezensis CB6, which secretes a protein known as CB6-E.
CB6-E has shown strong antibacterial properties, particularly against multi-drug-resistant E. coli strains. The researchers were successful in extracting and identifying this protein from the bacterium, and through tests, they found that CB6-E is able to suppress the growth of these harmful bacteria even at low doses. This renders it a valuable new weapon against infections that other antibiotics are no longer able to fight.
One of the most important questions for any novel therapy is whether or not it is safe to administer. The researchers subjected CB6-E to a variety of conditions, including various temperatures and pH, and it remained stable, which suggests it may be effective in a variety of environments. They also found that CB6-E does not damage red blood cells nor cause toxicity to normal cells in the body, which is also crucial in determining whether it could be applied to humans or animals.
The fascinating aspect of CB6-E is the manner in which it works to kill bacteria. It targets the outer membrane of the bacterial cells, which is the protective layer of the bacteria. By disrupting this outer layer, CB6-E makes the bacteria more vulnerable, and they ultimately die. This is a different process from what traditional antibiotics accomplish, so CB6-E could offer a new way to treat infections that are becoming harder to treat with existing medications.
Apart from the laboratory experiments, CB6-E was also applied to live organisms. They infected insects and mice with E. coli and treated them with promising results. The animals treated survived in higher numbers and had lesser bacteria in their organs compared to the untreated, showing that CB6-E can function in real-life situations.
The discovery of CB6-E is a hopeful breakthrough in the search for new treatments for infections that are resistant to antibiotics. It suggests that this protein is capable of safely and effectively destroying harmful bacteria and offers hope in the battle against antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
Full text: Nan Jiang, Tajin Wang, Yue Fang, Xiaoyu Liu, Nan Dai, Hongling Ruan, Huining Dai, Lili Guan, Chengguang He, Lingcong Kong, Weixue Meng, Hongxia Ma, Haipeng Zhang, A Novel Protein Demonstrating Antibacterial Activity Against Multidrug-Resistant Escherichia coli Purified from Bacillus velezensis CB6, Foods 2025, 14(7), 1255, https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14071255