Month: January 2023

Categories : CancerTags :

Turning a Traditional Chinese Medicinal Plant into a Cancer Fighter

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Photo by Bundo Kim on Unsplash

The evolutionary secrets that enable the traditional Chinese medicinal herb known as barbed skullcap to produce cancer fighting compounds have been unlocked by a collaboration of UK and Chinese researchers, who published their research in the journal Molecular Plant.

The researchers used DNA sequencing technology to assemble the genomic sequence of skullcap (Scutellaria barbata) known in China as banzhilian. This gave researchers the genetic information, a microevolutionary history, required to identify how the plant produces the compound scutebarbatine A, which acts against a range of cancer cells.

Professor Cathie Martin, Group Leader at the John Innes Centre, and one of the authors of the study said, “We have found that the primary metabolite has activity against cancer cells but not non-cancer cells which is especially important for an anti-cancer metabolite. Now we are looking to develop synthetic methods for producing more of the lead compound.”

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), to isolate medicinal chemistry from the plant, the herb is boiled in water for two hours and extract is dried to produce a powder and taken as a decoction (concentrated liquid). Now, with the knowledge of the genes that make up the biochemical pathway behind the anti-cancer activity of the herb, researchers are close to being able to synthesise larger quantities of compounds more rapidly and sustainably by using a host such as yeast.

The research is led by CEPAMS, a partnership between the John Innes Centre and the Chinese Academy of Science and supported by The Royal Society.

“This is a fantastic collaboration about developing interesting drug leads from natural resources and shows the practical value of focusing on the microevolution of a species” said Professor Martin.

The Skullcap genus has been used for centuries in TCM for treatment of different medical conditions. Clinical work has shown that preparations based on Scutellaria barbata during chemotherapy can reduce the risk of metastatic tumours.

CEPAMS Group Leader based at Shanghai Dr Evangelos Tatsis said, “Natural products have long been the lead compounds for the discovery of new drugs. By following the trail of the traditional Chinese plants, we can develop new anti-cancer medicines and this research marks a crucial step in that direction.”

Plant-based traditional medicines have long been used to provide leads for the new drug discovery, leading to drugs such as vinblastine and taxol which are now used clinically as anticancer drugs.

TCM is one of the best catalogued systems with empirical information about the therapeutic properties of herbal remedies.

Anti-cancer drugs obtained from traditional Chinese medicine have higher efficacy than chemical synthetic drugs and with less toxic side effects. The genomes of medicinal skullcaps reveal the polyphyletic origins of clerodane diterpene biosynthesis in the family Laminiaceae, is published in Molecular Plant

Source: John Innes Centre

Categories : Diseases, Syndromes and Conditions Immune SystemTags :

Scientists Solve Epstein-Barr Virus Mystery

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Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Medical science has not yet been able to explain why the Epstein-Barr virus triggers infectious mononucleosis (IM) in some people with initial infections and not in others. But now researchers have identified a unusual T cell response to the virus as the cause, and as a potential target for the development of vaccines. The findings were recently published in the journal Blood.

T cells normally fight the proliferation of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in humans as part of an antiviral immune response. In this response, certain EBV components (peptides) are presented to the T cells by a specific molecule (HLA-E), which is found on the surface of cells infected with EBV. This triggers a non-classical T-cell response that leads to the destruction of the infected cells. Due to a genetic variation (HLA-E*0103/0103), about one third of the population naturally has more HLA-E molecules on EBV-infected cells.

A recently published study has shown that the risk of developing IM following first-time infection with the Epstein-Barr virus depends strongly on this EBV-specific immune response.

“Our research revealed that people with the HLA-E*0103/0103 genetic variation have a lower risk of developing infectious mononucleosis than those who do not have the variation. Our experiments in the lab showed that this gene variation is associated with a highly pronounced EBV-specific -non-classical — immune response,” explained Hannes Vietzen from MedUni Vienna’s Center for Virology, the first author of the study.

Preventive and diagnostic possibilities

EBV is one of the most common viral infections in humans. On initial infection, the virus causes IM in some children and young adults; this disease is characterised by non-specific symptoms, such as fever, as well as exhaustion that in some cases can last for several months. Until now, it was unclear why a first-time EBV infection only leads to IM in a minority of people, while most do not present any symptoms whatsoever. The immune response that the researchers identified could also be a target for research into preventive measures: “This immune response was still measurable years after the initial EBV infection and generally provides long-lasting protection against reinfection with Epstein-Barr, so it might be worth focusing our attention on this mechanism with a view to developing new vaccines in future,” said Hannes Vietzen, looking ahead.

Another finding from the study could also open up new diagnostic options: “The combination of the unfavourable HLA-E genetic variation with certain EBV peptides also appears to play an important role in the development of EBV-associated lymphomas in transplant recipients,” Hannes Vietzen commented. “Analysis of the EBV strains found in these patients could be helpful in identifying high-risk patients at an early stage and treating them in good time.”

Source: Medical University of Vienna

Categories : AntibioticsTags :

Researchers Achieve Decolonisation of S. Aureus by Using Probiotics

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Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria. Credit: CDC

A clinic trial published in The Lancet Microbe found that a promising approach to that ‘decolonised’ Staphylococcus aureus by using a probiotic instead of antibiotics. The probiotic Bacillus subtilis markedly reduced S. aureus colonisation in trial participants without harming the gut microbiota. 

Staphylococcus aureus are colonising bacteria that often live in the nose, on the body and in the gut but if the skin barrier is broken or the immune system weakened, they can cause serious disease.

Preventing S. aureus infections by “decolonising” the body has gained increased attention as antibiotic resistance has spread, but large amounts of antibiotics are needed, damaging other microbiota and promoting more antibiotic resistance. So far, it appears that only nasal S. aureus colonisation can be targeted with topical antibiotics without doing too much harm, but bacteria quickly can recolonise in the nose from the gut.

Probiotics may be a way to complement or replace antibiotics, of which Bacillus is especially promising because it is administered orally as spores that can survive passage through the stomach and then temporarily grow in the intestine. In prior studies, Dr Otto’s group discovered an S. aureus sensing system needed for S. aureus to grow in the gut. They also found that fengycins, Bacillus lipopeptides that are part peptide and part lipid, stop the S. aureus sensing system from functioning, eliminating the bacteria.

In the clinical trial, conducted in Thailand, the research team tested whether this approach works in people. They enrolled 115 healthy participants, all of whom were colonised naturally with S. aureus. A group of 55 people received B. subtilis probiotic once daily for four weeks; a control group of 60 people received a placebo. After four weeks researchers evaluated the participants’ S. aureus levels in the gut and nose. They found no changes in the control group, but in the probiotic group they observed a 96.8% S. aureus reduction in the stool and a 65.4% reduction in the nose.

“The probiotic we use does not ‘kill’ S. aureus, but it specifically and strongly diminishes its capacity to colonise,” Dr. Otto said. “We think we can target the ‘bad’ S. aureus while leaving the composition of the microbiota intact.”

The researchers also found that levels of S. aureus bacteria in the gut far exceeded S. aureus in the nose, which for decades has been the focus of staph infection prevention research. This finding adds to the potential importance of S. aureus reduction in the gut.

“Intestinal S. aureus colonisation has been evident for decades, but mostly neglected by researchers because it was not a viable target for antibiotics,” Dr Otto said. “Our results suggest a way to safely and effectively reduce the total number of colonising S. aureus and also call for a categorical rethinking of what we learned in textbooks about S. aureus colonisation of the human body.”

The researchers plan to continue their work by testing the probiotic in a larger and longer trial. They note that their approach probably does not work as quickly as antibiotics, but can be used for long periods because the probiotic as used in the clinical trial does not cause harm.

Source: NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Categories : Emergency Medicine Injury & TraumaTags :

Aspirin as Effective as Heparin for Clot Prevention in Bone Fracture Hospitalisation

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Patients hospitalised with fractures typically receive low-molecular-weight heparin to prevent life-threatening blood clots. A new clinical trial, however, found that inexpensive over-the-counter aspirin is just as effective. The findings, published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, may lead surgeons to change their practice and administer aspirin to these patients.

With more than 12 000 patients, the multi-centre randomised clinical trial is the largest trial ever conducted on orthopaedic trauma patients. This multidisciplinary collaboration between orthopaedic surgeons and trauma surgeons points to the importance of evaluating techniques used to prevent post-surgical complications, like blood clots and infections, through high-quality, head-to-head comparison studies.

“Many patients with fractures will likely strongly prefer to take a daily aspirin over receiving injections after we found that both give them similar outcomes for prevention of the most serious outcomes from blood clots,” said the study’s principal investigator Robert V. O’Toole, MD. “We expect our findings from this large-scale trial to have an important impact on clinical practice that may even alter the standard of care.”

Patients who experience fractures that require surgery are at increased risk of developing blood clots, including life-threatening pulmonary embolisms. Current guidelines recommend prescribing low-molecular-weight heparin (enoxaparin) to prevent these clots, although smaller clinical trials in total joint replacement surgery suggested a potential benefit of aspirin as a less-expensive, widely available option.

The study enrolled 12 211 patients with leg or arm fractures that necessitated surgery or pelvic fractures regardless of the treatment. Half were randomised to 30mg of injectable enoxaparin twice daily. The other half received 81mg of aspirin twice daily. Patients were followed for 90 days to measure health outcomes from the two treatments.

The main finding of the study was that aspirin was “non-inferior,” or no worse than low molecular-weight heparin in preventing death from any cause – 47 patients in the aspirin group died, compared with 45 patients in the heparin group. For other important complications, the researchers also found no differences in pulmonary embolisms between the two groups. The incidence of bleeding complications, infection, wound problems, and other adverse events from the treatments was also similar in both groups.

Of all the outcomes studied, the only potential difference noted was in deep vein thrombosis. This condition was relatively uncommon in both groups as it occurred in 2.5% of patients in the aspirin group, and in 1.7% of patients in the heparin group.

“This relatively small difference was driven by clots lower in the leg, which are thought to be of less clinical significance and often do not require treatment,” said study co-principal investigator Deborah Stein, MD, MPH.

“Many patients don’t like giving themselves injections. It’s not fun in terms of giving the actual injection because it burns, and your stomach tends to bruise more easily compared to aspirin,” said Debra Marvel, a 53-year-old from Columbia, MD, who served as a patient advisor on the study. She received Lovenox (low-molecular-weight heparin) after her legs were crushed in a 2015 pedestrian accident, requiring multiple surgeries at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. “Patients also prefer aspirin because Lovenox can be expensive based on insurance.”

“An estimated one million Americans are hospitalised each year with extremity fractures, and this new finding could help prevent potentially fatal blood clots in these patients using a medication that is cheaper and far easier to administer,” said Mark T. Gladwin, MD, Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean, University of Maryland School of Medicine. “Given these important results, we can expect the guidelines for the prevention of blood clots to be revised to include the option of aspirin for patients with traumatic bone fractures.”

Source: University of Maryland School of Medicine

Categories : Injury & TraumaTags :

Slower Concussion Recovery for Athletes not All Bad News

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Rugby players
Photo by Olga Guryanova

Athletes who recover more slowly from concussion may be able to return to play with an additional month of recovery beyond the typical recovery time, according to a new study published in the journal Neurology. Slow recovery was defined as taking more than 14 days for symptoms to resolve or taking more than 24 days to return to play, both of which are considered the typical recovery times for about 80% of athletes with concussion.

“Although an athlete may experience a slow or delayed recovery, there is reason to believe recovery is achievable with additional time and injury management,” said study author Thomas W. McAllister, MD, of the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis. “This is an encouraging message that may help to relieve some of the discouragement that athletes can feel when trying to return to their sport. While some athletes took longer than 24 days to return to play, we found that three-quarters of them were able to return to sports if given just one more month to recover.”

The study looked at 1751 American college athletes diagnosed with a concussion by a team physician. Of Male athletes (63%) participated primarily in football, soccer and basketball. Female athletes (37%) participated primarily in soccer, volleyball and basketball.

Participants were evaluated five times: within six hours after their injury, one to two days later, once free of symptoms, once cleared to return to play and at six months.

Participants reported symptoms daily to medical staff, up to 14 days following injury and then weekly if they had not yet returned to play.

A total of 399 athletes, or 23%, had a slow recovery.

Researchers found that of the athletes who took longer than 24 days to return to play, more than three-fourths, or 78%, were able to return to play within 60 days of injury, and four-fifths, or 83%, were able to return to play within 90 days of injury. Only 11% had not returned to play six months after injury.

For the slow recovery group, the average time for returning to play was 35 days after injury, compared to 13 days in the overall group.

“The results of this study provide helpful information for athletes and medical teams to consider in evaluating expectations and making difficult decisions about medical disqualification and the value of continuing in their sport,” McAllister said.

A limitation of the study is that participants were all collegiate varsity athletes and may not be representative of other age groups or levels of sport, and the results may not apply to other types of mild brain injuries.

Source: American Academy of Neurology

Categories : Ageing Cardiovascular DiseaseTags :

Increasing Age Blunts the Strength of Certain Stroke Risk Factors

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Photo by CDC on Unsplash

Hypertension and diabetes are known risk factors for stroke, but now a new study shows that the amount of risk may decrease as people age. The study is published in Neurology.

“High blood pressure and diabetes are two important risk factors for stroke that can be managed by medication, decreasing a person’s risk,” said study author George Howard, DrPH, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health. “Our findings show that their association with stroke risk may be substantially less at older ages, yet other risk factors do not change with age. These differences in risk factors imply that determining whether a person is at high risk for stroke may differ depending on their age.”

The study involved 28 235 people who had never had a stroke and were followed for 11 years. Risk factors included hypertension, diabetes, smoking, atrial fibrillation, heart disease and left ventricular hypertrophy. Because of the well-known higher stroke risk in Black people (comprising 41% of participants), race was also considered as part of the assessed risk factors, Howard added.

Researchers followed up with participants every six months, confirming strokes by reviewing medical records.

During the study, there were 1405 strokes over 276 074 person-years. Participants were divided into three age groups. The age ranges for those groups varied slightly depending on the data being analysed by researchers. In general, the younger group included participants ages 45–69, the middle group included people in their late 60s to 70s and the older group included people 74 and older.

Researchers found that people with diabetes in the younger age group were approximately twice as likely to have a stroke as people of similar age who did not have diabetes, while people with diabetes in the older age group had an approximately 30% higher risk of having a stroke than people of similar older age who did not have diabetes.

Researchers also found that people with high blood pressure in the younger age group had an 80% higher risk of having stroke than people of similar age without high blood pressure while that risk went down to 50% for people with high blood pressure in the older age group compared to people of similar age without high blood pressure.

With race/ethnicity as a risk factor, Black participants in the younger age group compared to White participants in that group, a difference which decreased in the older age group. For stroke risk factors such as smoking, atrial fibrillation and left ventricular hypertrophy, researchers did not find an age-related change in risk.

“It is important to note that our results do not suggest that treatment of high blood pressure and diabetes becomes unimportant in older age,” said Howard. “Such treatments are still very important for a person’s health. But it also may be wise for doctors to focus on managing risk factors such as atrial fibrillation, smoking and left ventricular hypertrophy as people age.”

Howard also noted that even where the impact of risk factors decreases with age, the total number of people with strokes at older ages may still be larger since overall risk of stroke increases with age. For example, in the younger age group for hypertension, researchers estimate that about 2.0% of normotensive people had a stroke, compared to 3.6% of hypertensive people. In the older age group, about 6.2% of normotensive people had a stroke, compared to 9.3% of hypertensive people.

A limitation of the research was that participants’ risk factors were assessed only once at the start of the study, and it’s possible they may have changed over time.

Source: American Academy of Neurology 

Categories : HIV VaccinesTags :

Trial of New HIV Vaccine Ended Early due to Ineffectiveness

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HIV themed candle
Image by Sergey Mikheev on Unsplash

The investigational HIV ‘Mosaico’ vaccine regimen was safe but did not provide protection against HIV acquisition, an independent data and safety monitoring board (DSMB) has determined. Based on the DSMB’s recommendation, the study will be discontinued. This follows the failure of the similar ‘Imbokodo’ vaccine in sub-Saharan Africa.

The HPX3002/HVTN 706, or ‘Mosaico’ Phase 3 clinical trial began in 2019 and involved 3900 volunteers in Europe, North America and South America. The participants were men who have sex with men (MSM) or transgender people.

The Janssen-developed vaccine was based on ‘mosaic’ immunogens, which are vaccine components featuring elements of multiple HIV subtypes, in order to induce immune responses against a wide variety of global HIV strains. The investigational vaccine regimen consisted of four injections over a year of Ad26.Mos4.HIV, with the mosaic immunogens delivered by a common-cold virus (adenovirus serotype 26, or Ad26). The final two vaccinations were accompanied by a bivalent (two-component) HIV envelope protein formulation, combining clade C gp140 and mosaic gp140 envelope proteins, adjuvanted by aluminium phosphate to boost immune responses. All study vaccinations were completed in October 2022.

In early studies, this vaccine combination induced strong antibody and T-cell responses and protected monkeys exposed to SIV, the simian cousin of HIV. The vaccines however failed to stimulate production of broadly neutralising antibodies (bNAbs) that disable multiple HIV variants, according to aidsmap. In that study, the vaccine conferred a 25.2% effectiveness in protection, but not the 50% necessary for an effective vaccine.

In its scheduled data review, the DSMB determined there were no safety issues with the experimental vaccine regimen. However, the number of HIV infections were equivalent between the vaccine and placebo arms of the study. During the clinical trial, all participants were offered comprehensive HIV prevention tools, including pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP. Study staff ensured that participants who acquired HIV during the trial were promptly referred for medical care and treatment. Participants are being notified of the findings, and further analyses of the study data are planned.

The Mosaico findings track with developments in the Phase 2b ‘Imbokodo’ (HPX2008/HVTN 705) clinical trial, which was testing a similar HIV vaccine regimen in young women in sub-Saharan Africa. A DSMB determined in 2021 that the experimental vaccine regimen in that study was also safe but ineffective in protecting against HIV acquisition.

Source: NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Categories : AllergiesTags :

A Regimen of Boiled Peanuts Desensitises Allergy Sufferers

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Researchers took advantage of the fact that heat can affect the structure and immunoreactivity of peanuts, and tested out a peanut allergy therapy for children using sequential doses of boiled peanuts followed by roasted peanuts. Their trial, which is published in Clinical & Experimental Allergy, generated promising results, with 80% of participants experiencing desensitisation.

For this open-label, phase 2, single-arm clinical trial, 70 children aged 6–18 years old with peanut allergies received 12-hour boiled peanuts for 12 weeks, 2-hour boiled peanuts for 20 weeks, and roasted peanuts for 20 weeks, to a target maintenance dose of 12 roasted peanuts daily.

Fifty-six of the 70 (80%) participants became desensitised to peanuts. Treatment-related adverse events were reported in 43 (61%) participants, of whom three withdrew from the trial.

“Oral immunotherapy using boiled followed by roasted peanuts represents a pragmatic approach that appears effective in inducing desensitisation and is associated with a favourable safety profile,” the authors wrote.

Source: Wiley

Categories : Emergency MedicineTags :

Rescue of Mountaineer in Alaska Highlights Key Methods

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A trapped mountaineer survived after enduring 16 frigid hours wedged in a crevasse on a mountain in Alaska. The difficult extraction and subsequent critical care are examined in the journal Wilderness & Environmental Medicine. This compelling case study highlights the distinguishing factors that led to the successful outcome, such as continuing even when survival from severe hypothermia seems impossible.

The mountaineer was wedged about 20 metres deep in the crevasse, waiting 4.5 hours for a rescue team to arrive, followed by an 11.5-hour extrication process. His condition deteriorated and he eventually lost consciousness. Even though the rescue team collectively felt there was little or no chance of survival, they continued rescue efforts until the victim was extricated from the crevasse. He was almost immediately placed in a hypothermia wrap with active warming, loaded onto a rescue helicopter, and transported to a hospital in Fairbanks, Alaska. He was released after 14 days and made a full recovery.

“This case documents the heroic, persistent and expert rescue efforts of a group of people dedicated to saving lives. After conferring with the chief rescuer and chief of medical personnel, we pulled together our collective insights about the challenges of extracting climbers from extremely confined spaces and providing medical care to those who have had extended cold exposure,” explained lead investigator Gordon G. Giesbrecht, PhD, professor at the University of Manitoba.

Their recommendations build on lessons learned from a previously published case study of a helicopter pilot who died after being trapped in an icy crevasse for only four hours. In that paper, Dr Giesbrecht identified the need to develop processes for search and rescue personnel to prevent circum-rescue collapse, which is a complex physiological response to extreme cold that is worsened by improper handling of the patient. He cautioned that rescuers should be trained with the principle that the colder the victim is, the more care is required to perform horizontal extrication as gently as possible. Adding a few minutes for gentle handling and to reposition will not significantly increase cold exposure, but will greatly minimise the chance of rescue collapse.

“Responders should be aware of the causes, symptoms, and prevention of rescue collapse. Training should include techniques for transitioning a victim gently from vertical to a horizontal supine or, for narrower passages, to a lateral decubitus position. Even if a victim has to be hauled up in a vertical position, a simple technique using a sling or rope under the knees allows a simple, gentle and horizontal extrication from the crevasse to the surface,” noted Dr Giesbrecht.

This case emphasised the need to continue extrication and treatment efforts for a cold patient even when survival with hypothermia seems impossible. It also underscored the need for rescue teams to pre-plan equipment and procedures specific to crevasse rescue of potentially cold patients.

This case highlights an important mix of preventive and resuscitative lessons and recommendations regarding crevasse rescue in an isolated location:

  • Urging climbers to rope up for glacier travel in areas with known and possible crevasses.
  • Making sure that any rescuers who descend into crevasses are continuously observed by someone who remains on the surface and has radio contact to call for immediate assistance.
  • Recognizing that respirations are often more easily detected than pulses.
  • Trying unorthodox extrication methods when necessary.
  • Rescue teams deployed for crevasse rescues should carry kits with a pneumatic hammer-chisel (important for extrication), a tripod and winch, a hypothermia wrap made of a sleeping bag and chemical heating blankets, onboard oxygen supply with an adapter that connects to nasal prongs or a patient’s mask, a mechanical chest compression device, an automated external defibrillator, and IV saline with a fluid warmer. The Denali National Park and Preserve mountaineering rangers now include such kits in their rescue aircraft.

The investigators plan to submit a standardised rescue process based on these recommendations for publication after completing field testing in the summer of 2023.

When asked about what he considered the most crucial factor for survival, Dr Giesbrecht stressed that rescuers should never give up even when the patient’s survival with hypothermia seems impossible.

Source:

Categories : Environmental Effects Medical IndustryTags :

Can Fungi Transform Plastic Waste into Drug Components?

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Research on fungi has helped transform tough-to-recycle plastic waste from the Pacific Ocean into key components for making pharmaceuticals, using a genetically altered version of an everyday soil fungus, Aspergillus nidulans. The researchers described their chemical-biological approach in Angewandte Chemie, a journal of the German Chemical Society.

“What we’ve done in this paper is to first digest polyethylenes using oxygen and some metal catalysts – things that are not particularly harmful or expensive – and this breaks the plastics into diacids,” said co-author Berl Oakley, professor at the University of Kansas.

Next, long chains of carbon atoms resulting from the decomposed plastics were fed to genetically modified Aspergillus fungi. The fungi, as designed, metabolised them into an array of pharmacologically active compounds, including commercially viable yields of asperbenzaldehyde, citreoviridin and mutilin.

Unlike previous approaches, Oakley said the fungi digested the plastic products quickly, like “fast food.”

“The thing that’s different about this approach is it’s two things – it’s chemical, and it’s fungal,” he said. “But it’s also relatively fast. With a lot of these attempts, the fungus can digest the material, but it takes months because the plastics are so hard to break down. But this breaks the plastics down fast. Within a week you can have the final product.”

The KU researcher added the new approach was “bizarrely” efficient.

“Of the mass of diacids that goes into the culture, 42% comes back as the final compound,” he said. “If our technique was a car, it would be doing 200 miles per hour, getting 60 miles per gallon, and would run on reclaimed cooking oil.”

Previously, Oakley has worked with corresponding author Clay Wang of the University of Southern California to produce about a hundred secondary metabolites of fungi for a variety of purposes.

“It turns out that fungi make a lot of chemical compounds, and they are useful to the fungus in that they inhibit the growth of other organisms – penicillin is the canonical example,” Oakley said. “These compounds aren’t required for the growth of the organism, but they help either protect it from, or compete with, other organisms.”

Oakley’s lab at KU has honed gene-targeting procedures to change the expression of genes in Aspergillus nidulans and other fungi, producing new compounds.

The researchers focused on developing secondary metabolites to digest polyethylene plastics because those plastics are so hard to recycle. For this project, they harvested polyethylenes from the Pacific Ocean that had collected in Catalina Harbor on Santa Catalina Island, California.

“There’ve been a lot of attempts to recycle plastic, and some of it is recycled,” Oakley said. “A lot of it is basically melted and spun into fabric and goes into various other plastic things. Polyethylenes are not recycled so much, even though they’re a major plastic.”

The KU investigator said the long-term goal of the research is to develop procedures to break down all plastics into products that can be used as food by fungi, eliminating the need to sort them during recycling.

“I think everybody knows that plastics are a problem,” Oakley said. “They’re accumulating in our environment. There’s a big area in the North Pacific where they tend to accumulate. But also you see plastic bags blowing around – they’re in the rivers and stuck in the trees. The squirrels around my house have even learned to line their nest with plastic bags. One thing that’s needed is to somehow get rid of the plastic economically, and if one can make something useful from it at a reasonable price, then that makes it more economically viable.”

Source: University of Kansas