Antibiotic switch uses visible light
University of Groningen scientists led by organic chemist Ben Feringa have fitted an antibiotic with a switch that allows them to activate or deactivate the drug using visible light. Earlier versions of the switch were operated with ultraviolet light.
The Feringa group has made a switchable antibiotic before, but that version wasn’t suitable for medical use as the switch was only sensitive to UV light. This is harmful for living cells (it causes sunburn) and will not penetrate very far into the body of a patient. And that is where it needs to work as the purpose of the switch is to activate the antibiotic only where it is needed.
In the new paper, which appeared last month in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the switch has been modified to respond to infrared light. Laboratory tests with the bacterium Escherichia coli show an 8-fold increase in the effect of the antibiotic after activation. This is a proof of principle that shows it is possible to make drugs with an on/off switch. Such a switch might also be of interest for use in anti-cancer drugs, which are notoriously poisonous and can have severe side effects.
| Last modified: | 14 December 2017 2.57 p.m. |
More news
-
20 February 2020
Five experienced researchers from Groningen awarded Vici grants
The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has awarded 32 experienced researchers a Vici grant worth € 1.5 million each. Three of the awardees are conducting research at the University of Groningen (UG), and two at the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG)...
-
20 February 2020
Safe method for identifying polar bears tested
Identifying individual animals is an important part of biological field research. But how do you distinguish between individual animals when you do not want to capture or mark them, or when they do not have clear markings in their fur and are so dangerous...
-
13 February 2020
Extension of UG PhD Scholarship experiment approved
The Minister of Education, Culture and Science has approved the request made by the University of Groningen to extend the PhD Scholarship Programme Experiment. The request for extension fulfilled the requirements laid out in the Decree on a PhD Scholarship...