Scientists at MIT have found a potent antibiotic derived from wasp venom that could kill microbes resistant to conventional antibacterials. It was already known that wasp and bee venom contains peptides that kill bacteria, but these compounds have also proven to be toxic to human cells. Fortunately, the researchers zeroed in on the venom of a wasp from South America and observed that it could be easily manipulated within the lab to make it non-toxic. The findings could be useful for developing new antibiotics from other naturally-occurring antimicrobial peptides.
Scientists managed to develop an antibiotic from wasp venom
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