Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“A new part of the immune system has been discovered and it is a goldmine of potential antibiotics, scientists have said. They’ve shown a part of the body known to recycle proteins has a secret mode that can spew out an arsenal of bacteria-killing chemicals. The researchers in Israel say it transforms our understanding of how we are protected against infection. And gives a new place to look for antibiotics to tackle the growing problem of superbugs that resist our current drugs. The discovery centres on the proteasome – a tiny structure that is found in every cell of the body. Its main role is to chop up old proteins into smaller chunks so they can be recycled to make new ones. But a series of experiments, detailed in the journal Nature, shows the proteasome detects when a cell has been infected by bacteria.” (03/06/25)