To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Yale Scientists Convert Bacteria From Drug-Resistant To Drug-Sensitive URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/33B26.htm Doctor's Guide August 5, 1997
NEW YORK -- August 5, 1997 -- For the first time, scientists have demonstrated the ability to make drug-resistant bacteria drug-sensitive, according to an article appearing in today's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Using a technology called EGS oligozymes developed at Yale University and licensed exclusively for worldwide use by Innovir Laboratories, Inc., researchers successfully eliminated the material in bacteria that prevents antibiotic drugs from exerting their toxic action on bacterial cells. The author of the article is Sidney Altman, Ph.D, Sterling Professor of Biology at Yale University, who received the 1989 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery that RNA is not just a passive carrier of genetic code, but also can be an enzyme that actively engages in chemical reactions. The EGS technology is based on that discovery and is being further developed by Innovir. Antibiotic resistance has emerged as a major public health issue in the United States and throughout the world. The incidence of diseases once thought to be under control -- such as meningitis and tuberculosis -- is increasing. The reason: Over time, bacteria acquire traits that make them resistant to antibiotics. The resistant genes are passed along to other bacteria and antibiotics used to treat them become less effective. "Drug companies are investing millions of dollars to research and develop new, more powerful antibiotics to overcome drug- resistant bacteria," said Allan R. Goldberg, Ph.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Innovir. "EGS technology represents a potential alternative approach to the problem of antibiotic resistance, one that may prove to be less expensive and time-consuming than the standard strategy of developing new drugs. Another application for this exciting technology might be the use of EGSs to treat cancer patients to overcome their resistance to certain chemotherapeutic drugs. "The technology also has the potential for broad research application by helping pharmaceutical companies to identify more effectively new genetic targets for drug development." Innovir's EGS oligozymes are chemically-modified RNA-like compounds that are specifically designed to target and destroy molecules that carry genetically-encoded instruction for the production of proteins in cells. In the study described in the PNAS article, scientists introduced EGSs into strains of Escherichia coli harboring antibiotic resistance genes. The EGSs combine with the messenger RNA of the bacteria's drug-resistant genes. The combinations are recognized as targets by internal enzymes, which cut the messenger RNA, inactivating it and restoring drug sensitivity to cells. According to the article, boosting the ratio of EGSs to target messenger RNA and increasing the number of different target sites on the messenger RNA enhances the efficiency of the conversion method. "Although the path from our experiments to a practical therapeutic tool may be a very long and costly one, this method could restore the full usefulness of today's front-line antibiotics, thus bypassing the tremendous expense of developing new antibiotics," said Nobel laureate Sidney Altman. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.