Instead of killing bacteria, turn it off!
Apparently, there is close at hand the ability to reprogram bacteria. This is significant because people tend to develop resistance to antibiotics. The antibiotics are effective at killing the bacteria. But the body tends to resist the antibiotic making it no longer effective.
Solution? By reprogramming the DNA of the bacteria to turn the gene off, there is no need for the antibiotics in your body, or the potential of the body building resistance to the antibiotic.
Dr Yu-Hsuan Tsai, who is conducting this genetic study, said in his article at Smithsonian.com,
In our study, we found that adding an acetyl tag to HU significantly affected the way it interacted with the DNA.
This means it’s highly likely that such modification makes epigenetic changes, affecting how the bacteria grow and infect other organisms.
So if we can create drugs that make these changes to bacterial proteins in this way, we could have a new way of stopping infections.
By including that highly technical quote, you are not only able to see first-hand the subject complexity, but also some necessary language. Words like “highly likely” and “if we can… we could have,” demonstrate a direction not yet attained but aimed at.
Looking at things from a different perspective is an excellent principle of problem solving. In this case, not killing the bacteria – for a long time assumed to be the only way to deal with illness – but actually turning off the mechanism that makes bacteria harmful.
What’s your perspective?