Some bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics through mutations in their DNA. Others are able to flush drugs out of their cells to maintain their dominance. Now scientists have discovered another way - modification of ribosomes when exposed to widely used antibiotics, according to the website of the Research Centre for Genomic Studies in Barcelona.
To reach this conclusion, the scientists tested the antibiotics streptomycin and kasugamycin, which specifically affect ribosomes, cell organelles that play a key role in protein synthesis. It is known that ribosomal RNA is often modified with chemical tags that can change the shape and function of the ribosome. Cells use these tags to fine-tune protein synthesis.
It has now been established that in response to antibiotics, bacteria change those chemical tags that are particularly important for binding to the antibiotic.
According to the author of the work, Anna Delgado Tejedor, the bacteria change their structure exactly as much as necessary to interfere with the action of the drug. "This is amazing precision work, which is carried out in real time," she emphasized.
Currently, scientists continue to study this mechanism and are working on creating a new class of antibacterial drugs.
In another study, scientists previously found a mechanism by which methicillin-resistant staph protects itself from antibiotics. This superbug carries a greater health risk, but now scientists know its weak spot.