‘Antimicrobial proteins from fermented foods may help treat newborn with sepsis’

Lucknow: Natural antimicrobial proteins produced by beneficial bacteria found in fermented foods and milk may help in treating newborn babies with sepsis, who do not respond to commonly used antibiotics.This finding was reported in a review conducted by researchers from the Microbiology department of KGMU.
The study, titled "Lactic Acid Bacteria-derived Bacteriocins: A Promising Antimicrobial Strategy against Multidrug-resistant Neonatal Sepsis Pathogens," was published in Feb in the journal ‘Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins'. The review was authored by Prof Sheetal Verma and Dr Vijay Laxmi.Prof Verma said neonatal sepsis is a serious bloodstream infection that affects newborns, especially premature or low-birth-weight babies, and remains a major cause of illness and death, particularly in middle-income countries like India.The researchers analysed existing scientific studies to understand whether bacteriocins could be used in the future to treat drug-resistant neonatal sepsis. Bacteriocins are natural antimicrobial proteins produced by lactic acid bacteria, which are commonly found in fermented foods and milk.Prof Verma said bacteriocins can target harmful bacteria while causing less disturbance to beneficial microbes in the body, which may be important for newborns whose immune systems are still developing.The researchers also noted that bacteriocins produced by milk-associated bacteria may help protect infants. These proteins remain stable under different temperatures and pH levels and can resist enzymes, which may support their use in medicines.Dr Vijay Laxmi said bacteriocins cannot replace antibiotics at present but may be used along with existing treatments if future studies confirm their safety and effectiveness.