A bacterium frozen 5,000 years ago can withstand ten antibiotics and be useful in producing medicines
The strain has been isolated in an ice cave in Romania and poses a double scenario: it can aggravate microbial resistance if released, but it can also open the door to biotechnological innovations.
A study published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology has examined the bacterial strain Psychrobacter SC65A.3, which has been isolated in the cave of Scarisoa, Romania, and preserved in ice for about 5,000 years. The study shows that it is resistant to ten types of commonly used antibiotics, including rifampicine, vancomicine or ciprofloxacin.
The team of scientists dug a 25-metre ice core in the Great Hall that covers the timeline up to 13,000 years and sequenced the genome of the strain found, which contains more than 100 genes associated with antibiotic resistance and showed resistance to 28 drugs used in oral and injectable therapies.
According to Cristina Purcarea, a researcher at the Romanian Academy who signed the paper, if the ice melted and these microbes were released, genes could be transferred to current bacteria and the global problem of microbial resistance aggravated. This is the first time antibiotic resistance has been detected in a strain of the genus Psychrobacter, such as trimetoprim, clindamycin or metronidol, used in urinary infections, lung, skin, blood or reproductive system.
However, the discovery also opens up a promising path . The strain can prevent the growth of some resistant superbacteria and has a remarkable enzyme activity with biotechnological potential. In its genome, researchers have identified nearly 600 genes with still unknown functions and 11 genes with the potential to eliminate or stop the growth of bacteria, fungi and viruses.
According to the SC65A.3 profile, cold-adapted microorganisms can act as a natural reservoir of resistance genes, providing new keys to how these mechanisms evolve and spread in nature.
Purcarea has stressed that these old bacteria are essential for science and medicine, but has stressed that they must be manipulated with extreme safety measures to avoid the risks of uncontrolled spread.
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