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Out of the blue...

24 May 2005

Deep-sea microbiology could soon be helping to restrain antibiotic-resistant infections like MRSA, the hospital 'superbug', according to research results announced at a conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday 24 May.

Using new techniques to detect microscopic organisms, researchers from the Universities of Kent and Newcastle probed the sediments beneath the deep ocean floor. There they uncovered numerous new species of actinomycete bacteria, many of which are known for their antibiotic properties.

Professor Alan Bull from the University of Kent, said, " The most exciting discovery has been a chemically-unique antibiotic, abyssomicin C, which has been found in an actinomycete recovered from the marine environment and has properties which could be used to inhibit MRSA."

Deep-sea microbiology is relatively new because it is difficult and costly to recover material from water many thousands of metres deep and from beneath the seafloor.

Other researchers, led by Professor Nick Mann from the University of Warwick, have been looking at the surface of the sea and viruses that affect the tiny floating plants that help drive environmental processes. They discovered that some of the oxygen we breathe is actually a by-product of a viral infection. They analysed the genome of one of the viruses that infects single celled cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) in the oceans.

Said Professor Mann, "We found that as the virus multiplies and the host dies, the virus's genetic code actually forces the cyanobacteria to produce key proteins to keep photosynthesis going, which in turn produces more oxygen."

There is also a very real possibility that viruses influence our climate. Dr Gill Malin from the University of East Anglia explained, " We've now established a firm link between the death of marine algal blooms caused by viruses and the release of dimethyl sulphide, a compound that exerts a cooling influence on the climate because it helps clouds form."

Professor Mann added, "Viruses are the largest biotechnological resource on the planet and we're only just beginning to realise their value. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of marine and freshwater viruses is their enormous potential for nanotechnology, as they themselves are self-assembling nanostructures."

Breakthroughs have also been made in the process of finding new bioactive compounds. A combination of scientific expertise and vastly efficient new techniques to screen the bacteria for compounds that have pharmaceutical properties, has led to a ten-fold increase in the screening success rates.

Another finding is that bacteria allowed to grow together, as biofilms, behave very differently from single cells grown alone. In natural conditions bacteria form a 'society' when colonising a surface and living together. To defend their colony against invaders they release chemicals that inhibit or kill rival bacteria. But when grown as widely separated cells in a shake-flask, the bacteria don't 'talk' to each other and no bioactive compounds (that might be developed as antibiotic drugs) are produced. This result has major implications for the drug-discovery programmes of the pharmaceutical industry.

These are some of the important discoveries coming from the Marine and Freshwater Microbial Biodiversity Programme, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). The in-depth results are being discussed at a programme finale in Edinburgh on 24 May, and in London on 2 June. Members of the press are welcome to attend.

Further information

NERC Press Office
Natural Environment Research Council
Polaris House, North Star Avenue
Swindon, SN2 1EU
Tel: 01793 411561
Mob: 07917 557215

Notes

1. The programme finale is being held on 24 May at the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 22-26 George St, Edinburgh EH2 2PQ.

2. The finale event will be repeated on 2 June at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, Westminster, London SW1P 3EE. The event starts at 10:30 and members of the press are welcome to attend any of the talks.

3. Interviews with the researchers can be arranged via the NERC press office on 01793 411727 or 01793 442629

4. It would be very helpful if you could let us know if you are planning to the event.

5. The Marine & Freshwater Microbial Biodiversity programme ran from 2000 to 2005. NERC invested nearly £7m in the programme which supported over 30 projects and involved around 120 scientists in universities and in NERC research centres.

6. The Edinburgh programme finale is linked to Scottish Biodiversity Week, 21-29 May 2005, and a BBSRC-NERC exhibition "Biodiversity - what on Earth is it?" held at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 21 May - 19 June 2005.

7. NERC is a UK research council. It uses a budget of about £300m a year to fund and carry out impartial scientific research in the sciences of the environment. NERC trains the next generation of independent environmental scientists. It is addressing some of the key questions facing mankind such as global warming, renewable energy and sustainable economic development.

Press release: 21/05