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Posted: 11th March 2014

Key discovery could help combat resistance
Image pills
Key finding could help with the design of new drugs.
Communication between bacteria is similar to human language, scientists say

Scientists have discovered that communication between bacteria bears striking resemblance to human language. This key discovery could help prevent bacteria from becoming resistant to antibiotics.

Led by researchers from the University of Edinburgh, the study helps to explain how bacteria co-operate with each other.

According to findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), bacteria "talk" to one another using a form of communication similar to human language, using chemical signals instead of words.

Scientists say this discovery could inform the design of new drugs that do not increase the bugs' resistance to treatments.

The research team says bacteria recognise their social and physical environment through chemical compounds which act as messages. During the study, researchers found bacteria responded differently to a combination of two messages than they did to either message individually.

Until recently, scientists say only humans and other primates were known to communicate in this way. It is a form of dialogue known as combinatorial communication, where signals have different meanings according to their context.

Current treatments simply block all communication between bacteria, but experts say this can massively alter the bugs' gene expression, aiding the survival of resistant strains.

The research team says their work indicates more subtle treatments that only block harmful signals may be equally effective, but would not lead to resistance.



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