Researchers at the National University of Colombia (U.N.) have patented a peptide with antibiotic potential. This achievement is the result of an earlier work by researchers Viktor Lemeshko and Sergio Peralta Orduz of the Faculty of Sciences Medellín a decade ago.
They lab simulated a segment of 33 amino acids (peptide) from the Cry11Bb protein serovar of the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. medellin, present in the soil, original from Colombia, which was very active when tested in pathogenic microorganisms, i.e, those that cause diseases.
El péptido (pequeña proteína) sintético BTM-P14 perfora las células de la bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli), la cual se encuentra en el tracto intestinal y es la responsable de la enfermedad diarreica grave (EDA), uno de los problemas de salud pública de mayor importancia en el mundo.
The BTM-P14 synthetic peptide (small protein) pierces Escherichia coli (E. coli) cells, which is found in the intestinal tract and is responsible for severe diarrheal disease (ADD), one of the most important health problems in the world.
Studies of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF) show that E. coli causes between five and six million children´s deaths each year in developing countries (Africa and Asia especially). In fact, it is the second cause of infant mortality.
It also attacks the Staphylococcus aureus, a multi-resistant bacteria which causes folliculitis (inflammation of the follicles of the skin), conjunctivitis (swelling of the membrane that lines the inside of the eyelids), meningitis (condition of the lining of the nervous system central) and pneumonia (inflammation of the lungs).
Similarly, the peptide combats Enterococcus faecalis, a microorganism responsible for 10% of nosocomial infections (caught in clinics and hospitals) worldwide, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. It also causes infections in bladder and prostate and is resistant to antibiotics.
The antitumor activity of the synthetic peptide was shown by Jurkat and U937 cultured cells. The first consists of a line of cells used to study leukemias, and the latter are specialized in the study of lymphoma, a cancer that starts in the lymphatic system.
As for plants, the compound attacks the bacteria Ralstonia solanacearum, which causes bacterial wilt of potato; and in relation to insects, it eliminates mosquito larvae Aedes aegypti and Anopheles albimanus, transmitters of malaria, yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya and zika.
Es probable que la biología y la física, cada una por separado, no hubiesen encontrado un péptido con todas las propiedades mencionadas, porque las ciencias exactas también tienen sus límites.
It is likely that biology and physics, each separately, had not found a peptide with all the properties mentioned, because hard sciences also have their limits.
In 1996, when he was a doctoral student in Basic Biomedical Sciences, biologist Orduz focused on Cry11Bb protein from Bacillus thuringiensis serovar. medellin, particularly in a group of amino acids that were part of their formation, and designed a three-dimensional theoretical model. With this information he approached biophysics through the laboratory of Professor Viktor Lemeshko who specialized in biomembranes.
Thus it began an interdisciplinary work which was to analyze Cry11Bb regions, based on the study of physicochemical and biophysical properties. In addition, Professor Lemeshko deepened in the study of mitochondria model (which supplies most of the energy needed for cellular respiration), red blood cells and liposomes (lipid bubbles of the same material found in the cell membrane).
At the same time, Professor Orduz worked with microorganisms and insects, because he had discovered that the compounds of the protein he had found had similarities with some peptides produced by the «bugs», defense system; for example, cecropins (first isolated in the insects hemolymph (blood) of in the silk butterfly (Hyalophora cecropia).
Therefore they designed an experimental model to search drilling of the membranes. Thus, they demonstrated that the synthetic peptide has ionophoric property, i.e it pierces cells for potassium, sodium, and chloride ions; It is also polycationic, it has many positive charges.
Peptides can be distinguished if they have positive or negative charges and the ability of water solubility. Depending on these properties, and other they interact in different ways with other molecules. Then, «a peptide with positive charges will be attracted by the negative charges of a cell, which causes membrane permeabilization, electric collapse and sometimes loss of the contents of the cell,» scientists say.
The study showed that mitochondria are very sensitive to peptides such as the patented by the U.N., when they breathe and generate electrical high membrane potential. This indicates that the bacteria, which are very similar to mitochondria, could be eliminated by these peptides.
The preparation developed can be used in human or veterinary medicine or in agriculture, for preventive or therapeutic use, through tablets, pills or , oral and injectable suspensions, among other formulations.
Con la patente concedida por la Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio, se evidencia que más allá de materias primas, Colombia está en condiciones de competir con calidad y pertinencia a través de ciencia y tecnología de talla mundial. (Fuente: UNC/DICYT)
The patent granted by the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce, shows that Colombia can compete not only with commodities, but with quality and relevance in science and in world-class technology. (Source: UNC / DICYT)
Source: http://noticiasdelaciencia.com/not/19960/patentan-un-peptido-con-potencial-antibiotico/
