An international team of scientists has discovered an important natural antibiotic called dermcidin, produced by our skin when we sweat.
It is possible that the newly discovered antibiotic – dermcidin – could be used as the latest tool in the fight against tuberculosis. Dermcidin is an anti-microbial (antibiotic) peptide secreted by human eccrine sweat glands onto the skin as a part of the innate immune system.
When people sweat, this spreads highly efficient antibiotics across the skin. This offers some protection against microorganisms. When the skin becomes injured by a small cut, a scratch, or the sting, antibiotic agents, such as dermcidin, are secreted by sweat glands.
Although the properties of the protein were discovered about ten years ago, the capacity of the protein to be used as an antibiotic is only now being realized through experimental trials. This comes from a study carried out by researchers from the University of Edinburgh and from Goettingen, Tuebingen and Strasbourg, is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
What is important about these natural substances, known as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), is that they could be more effective, in the long term, than traditional antibiotics. This is because, in theory, microorganisms are less capable of quickly developing resistance against them.
The scientific research could contribute to the development of new antibiotics that control multi-resistant bacteria.
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