Maggots to fight MRSA?

Scientists could be about to develop a new antibiotic derived from maggots which will tackle problem bugs including strains of MRSA.

Seraticin was developed by scientists at the University of Swansea in Wales and is made from maggot secretions of the common green bottle fly.

So far, they have purified it and undertaken the study of its structure and the mechanism by which it prevents infection.

The next steps will be to complete the identification of the compound and develop a way to synthesise it.

It can then be tested on human cells and eventually in clinical trials in order to determine its medical effectiveness and properties as an antibiotic which could be injected, swallowed as a pill or used as an ointment.

Maggot therapy is already a recognised treatment for ulcers that will not heal, and placing maggots on wounds is an age-old method of fighting infection.

The grubs secrete chemicals that clean wounds and kill bacteria, preventing the decay of body tissues.

Tests have shown Seraticin to be effective against up to 12 different strains of the superbug Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), as well as the food poisoning bacterium Escherichia coli and Clostridium difficile.

Between 2002 and 2006, almost 16,000 deaths in England and Wales involved C difficile and more than 6,000 deaths were from MRSA.

Professor Norman Ratcliffe, who led the scientists, said: "It has been a huge team effort to get to this level and I am delighted with our progress. However, there is more to do if we are to realise the maximum benefits from this discovery.

"It takes approximately 20 mugs of maggots to yield just one drop of purified Seraticin at present. Thus, the next stage will be to confirm its exact identity using mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses in order for us to produce this chemically on a larger scale."

Dr Alun Morgan, from the Wales-based company ZooBiotic Ltd, which supplied maggots for the project, said: "Maggots are great little multi-taskers. They produce enzymes that clean wounds, they make a wound more alkaline which may slow bacterial growth and finally they produce a range of antibacterial chemicals that stop the bacteria growing."

Dr Yolande Harley of Action Medical Research, the charity that funded the study, said: "The discovery of a potential new antibiotic is an exciting advance. It could mean a possible novel treatment for people with chronic wounds that are infected with MRSA or other bugs."

For more information on the charity go to www.action.org.uk.

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