Promising new antibiotic has been found in the human nose

Promising New Antibiotic Has Been Found In The Human Nose
Promising New Antibiotic Has Been Found In The Human Nose

Some human noses have been found to contain a microbe which can kill an infection-causing bug resistant to other antibiotics.

The discovery is documented in a new study from the University of Tübingen in Germany.

The Guardian is reporting that for the research, the team analyzed nasal samples from 37 participants and found that about 10 percent harbored the bacterium Staphylococcus lugdunensis.

This organism can produce lugdunin, an antibiotic shown to kill the potentially harmful 'superbug' methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA.

The team's findings add to the likelihood that the human body contains disease-fighting microbes, notes USA Today.

This relatively new source for antibiotics is especially welcome, as patients are becoming less responsive to the medicines that are currently available.

While the study's researchers are seeking a patent on lugdunin, they acknowledge that developing a drug with it is still years away.

RELATED: Antibiotic-resistant germs

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