According to researchers at ETH Zurich and the University of Bonn, the key to winning the war against antibiotic resistance may lie in horse manure. This team of researchers has produced copsin, an antibiotic protein compound found in the common inky cap mushroom that grows in horse manure.
Horse manure - Key to antibiotic resistance?
A team of researchers has produced copsin, an antibiotic protein compound found in the common inky cap mushroom that grows in horse manure and report that it may provide a solution to antibiotic resistance.
The research team led by Markus Aebi, Professor of Mycology at ETH Zurich (the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich) was studying the relationship between fungus and different types of bacteria when results showed that a common inky cap mushroom called Coprinopsis cinerea destroyed some of the bacteria.
Digging deeper, researchers found that it was the protein compound copsin that was exhibiting the antibiotic effect.
Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to human health and longevity. Weâve enjoyed a 70-year winning streak against infectious illness, but this streak is sure to come to an end as bacteria strains have mutated and no longer respond to antibiotics.
Scientists are scrambling to replace these now defunct antibiotics with natural solutions that wonât succumb to antibiotic resistance. Copsin may be one such solution, and horse manure may hold the key.
âHorse dung is a very rich substrate that harbors a diversity of micro-organisms, including fungi and bacteria,â said Essig. âNow these micro-organisms are in a constant competition for nutrients and space and itâs therefore very likely to find potent antibiotics in such an environment, which are used by the different organisms to inhibit the growth of the competitors.â
Essigâs team cultivated C. cinerea in the laboratory alongside several strains of infectious bacteria, and the mushroom was able to eradicate several types of bacteria. Copsin, a protein, has a very unique mechanism of attack. It binds to the cell wall of the bacteria, thereby disrupting cell wall synthesis and killing the bacteria.
Researchers also say that copsin may be a viable candidate for food preservation because it kills pathogens such as listeria, a common cause of severe food poisoning. Tests have shown that copsin is extremely stable when exposed to high temperatures and an acidic environment.
These studies are preliminary, but researchers are busy exploring the promising potential of copsin as an antibiotic weapon. Our presently used antibiotics have only lasted 70 years, but the defense mechanisms of fungi have proven successful for millions of years and may provide the answer to the problems of antibiotic resistance presented by presntly-used antibiotics.