Israeli researchers have developed a novel method for screening and detecting new efficient antibiotics¹, Ben Gurion University (BGU) in southern Israel said Tuesday.

 

以色列本古里安大学周二表示，该校研究人员发现一种筛选发现新型有效抗体的新方法。

 

The method, published in the journal Chemical Science, can help fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

 

According to the researchers, the new technology provides an efficient, fast and cost-effective way to identify novel antibiotics that inhibit² the ribosome, which is the protein-producing machinery³ of all living cells.

 

Inhibition of ribosomal activity in bacterial⁴ cells, using antibiotics, results in depletion⁵ of essential proteins and finally in cell death.

 

However, the ribosome is a huge complex containing both RNA molecules⁶ and several proteins, so identifying drugs that will inhibit its activity is a challenging task.

 

The new method designs antibiotics that target a small RNA region in the ribosome, as focusing on this region allows quick and efficient screening and designing of drugs.

 

The new technology combines empirical screening of small molecular⁷ fragments that bind⁸ this RNA region using nuclear magnetic resonance⁹, with machine learning algorithms that enable the computational design of novel drugs based on the fragments.

 

According to the researchers, their workflow design is applicable not only to antibiotics targeting the ribosome RNA but also for other RNA targets, such as RNA viruses responsible for diseases such as hepatitis or HIV, as well as for other conditions such as cancer.

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