Antibiotics to beat superbugs

Antibiotics to combat hospital superbugs as well as tuberculosis and salmonellas are being developed by Dr Jim Naismith of St Andrews University, Scotland.

Superbugs such as MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) and other antibiotic-tolerant bacteria are found increasingly in hospital intensive-care units where the most vulnerable are treated.

Dr Naismith and his colleagues are using micro-organisms and structural biology to study the synthesis of carbohydrates as a way to creating drugs to combat these virulent forms of bacteria. "Bacteria make carbohydrate molecules that are not found in humans. We have worked out how they make two sugars, in particularly L-rhamnose and D-galactofuranose. Several enzymes (protein molecules) which we have characterised make these sugars.''

The research involves determining the full three-dimensional structure of protein molecules. In essence the protein is magnified one hundred million times. This allows Dr Naismith and his colleagues to see exactly how the protein works and, more importantly, how the structure can be altered to stop it operating.

''Bacterial disease is a serious problem. While we are looking for antibiotics that could combat MRSA, we are also focusing on tuberculosis that is re-emerging as a significant concern in the United Kingdom.