Boho highlands in Fermanagh country, Ireland was a land once occupied by druids and it is an archaeologically rich area as well. According to a local belief people in the area has used the soil from the graveyard of the Sacred Heart church for generations to cure their illnesses. A small amount of soil was wrapped in a cloth and kept under pillow. Once the illness is cured they were required to return the soil back to where it was. Traditional ancient folk remedies are usually ignored by researchers and medical professionals but Dr. Gerry Quinn of Swansea University Medical School thought of testing the soil and the results they got was surprising.
As we all know bacterial infections are usually treated with antibiotics. However multi resistant pathogens require to be treated with higher tier antibiotics. There is a global increase in multi resistant ESKAPE pathogens (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pnuemoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter species) and if all solutions fail it can be fatal and can spread multi resistant strains as well. Dr. Gerry and his team were able to isolate a novel species of Streptomyces from the soil samples they collected from the graveyard. Furthermore it also inhibited the growth of many multi resistant ESKAPE pathogens including the priority pathogens listed by the WHO. It has a tolerance to radiation and high alkaline conditions which implies the ability to grow in extreme environments. The active components responsible for the inhibition is to be further researched. This discovery might not be the panacea, but in an era where pathogens are more and more antibiotic resistant, this is a big step.
Reference : Frontiers in Microbiology
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