antibiotic

In a breakthrough research, British scientists said Tuesday that maggots can provide doctors with a powerful new drug against deadly methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Scientists at Swansea University in South Wales said they’ve developed an antibioticdefine from maggots that can tackle different kinds of bacteria including certain strains of MRSA, as well as Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Clostridium difficile (C.diff).

The British researchers’ team said the new antibiotic, called Seraticin, is made from the maggot secretions of the common green bottle fly.

Maggot therapy, in which maggots are placed on small wounds, is a well established method of fighting infection. Now the researchers hope to turn the newly developed antibiotic into a drug that can be injected, swallowed as a pill or used as an ointment.