Hospital 'superbug' cure possible

A deadly bacteria known to infect hospital patients may be vulnerable to a new treatment, British researchers said.

As reported in New Scientist magazine, the bacteria, MRSA -- also known as the "hospital superbug" -- is highly resistant to conventional antibiotics and kills up to 20,000 people a year in the United Kingdom.

Researchers at the company Pharmaceutica said they may have found a compound that breaks down the bacteria's defenses and leaves it vulnerable to ordinary antibacterial treatments. The compound contains a commonly available amino acid called glycine, which alters the cell walls of MRSA, allowing antibiotics to work.

One such antibiotic, called methicillin -- like penicillin -- can break down staphylococcus bacteria and render them harmless. Some of these bacteria, however, have evolved to resist methicillin. MRSA stands for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

© Copyright 2004 by United Press International